Blood In my Veins from a Baltimore Legend...Birthed into the crucial drug game of the 80's in Baltimore City, MD Who would have ever thought that I would follow the path of my pops; a real gangster, a real hustler, a real man dedicated to the streets chasing a drug dealers dream, chasing millions and all while living a lifestyle filled with money, pussy and endless good times... yet coincidently ending with the heartache and pain from the incarceration and deaths of most of my team, my niggaz, more like my brothers

Experience the stunning rise, fall, and legacy of N.W.A. and how they put their stamp on pop culture, black culture, and hip-hop music forever in this “incredibly vivid look at one of music’s most iconic groups” (Associated Press). In 1986, a group was formed that would establish the foundation of gangsta rap and push the genre forward, electrifying fans with their visceral and profane lyrics that glorified the dark ways of street life and brazenly challenged the police system. Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella caused a seismic shift in hip-hop when they decided to form N.W.A in 1986. With their hard-core image, bombastic sound, and lyrics that were equal parts poetic, lascivious, conscious, and downright in-your-face, N.W.A spoke the truth about life on the streets of Compton, California—then a hotbed of poverty, drugs, gangs, and unemployment. Going beyond the story portrayed in the 2015 blockbuster movie Straight Outta Compton, through firsthand interviews, extensive research, and top-notch storytelling, Los Angeles Times music reporter Gerrick Kennedy transports you back in time and offers a front-row seat to N.W.A’s early days and the drama and controversy that followed the incendiary group as they rose to become multiplatinum artists. Kennedy leaves nothing off the table in his pursuit of the full story behind the group’s most pivotal moments, such as Ice Cube’s decision to go solo after their debut studio album became a smash hit; their battle with the FBI over inflammatory lyrics; incidents of physical assault; Dr. Dre’s departure from the group to form Death Row Records with Suge Knight; their impact on the 1992 L.A. riots; Eazy-E’s battle with AIDS; and much more. A bold, riveting, “non-stop, can’t-put-it-down ride” (Library Journal), Parental Discretion Is Advised unveils the true and astonishing history of one of the most transcendent and controversial musical groups of the 1980s and 1990s.

The story of Tekashi 6ix9ine one of the most controversial figures in all of hip-hop history, Dummy Boy tells the tale his meteoric rise to fame. In tracing Danny "Tekashi 6ix9ine" Hernandez's life from Bushwick to the heights of the rap scene, Complex reporter Shawn Setaro illuminates the story of the young rapper who forged an alliance with a notorious street gang to bolster his image and boost his internet clout. Before long, Tekashi's antics and affiliations caught up with him, leading to a major police investigation that tore apart his team and saw him squarely behind bars, facing a life in prison. A thrilling true crime narrative set in the contemporary hip-hop world, Dummy Boy draws on dozens of exclusive interviews with collaborators, associates, and witnesses, to provide a detailed account of the most beguiling and intriguing story in modern music. More than a biography, Dummy Boy is an American crime story, a critical examination of internet trolling in the Trump era, and an exploration of the long-running connection between rap, gangs, and police in New York City.

In the late 1980s, gangsta rap music emerged in urban America, giving voice to—and making money for—a social group widely considered to be in crisis: young, poor, black men. From its local origins, gangsta rap went on to flood the mainstream, generating enormous popularity and profits. Yet the highly charged lyrics, public battles, and hard, fast lifestyles that characterize the genre have incited the anger of many public figures and proponents of "family values." Constantly engaging questions of black identity and race relations, poverty and wealth, gangsta rap represents one of the most profound influences on pop culture in the last thirty years. Focusing on the artists Ice Cube, Dr. Dre, the Geto Boys, Snoop Dogg, and Tupac Shakur, Quinn explores the origins, development, and immense appeal of gangsta rap. Including detailed readings in urban geography, neoconservative politics, subcultural formations, black cultural debates, and music industry conditions, this book explains how and why this music genre emerged. In Nuthin'but a "G" Thang, Quinn argues that gangsta rap both reflected and reinforced the decline in black protest culture and the great rise in individualist and entrepreneurial thinking that took place in the U.S. after the 1970s. Uncovering gangsta rap's deep roots in black working-class expressive culture, she stresses the music's aesthetic pleasures and complexities that have often been ignored in critical accounts.

Preeminent rap journalist Ronin Ro exposes Death Row Records: an empire built on greed, corruption, murder, and exploitation. 16 photos.

A book written on empirically researched facts that won’t necessarily be taught in the classroom due to curriculum being a leverage of power, Rise, My Setting Son is designed to open the eyes and minds of Black men and more to the possibilities of acknowledging our part of being controlled in our positions of lack. Not a book to be used to cause division, but a book to help determine the spirit in which we exist in society and to acknowledge we are more alike than not. A book with hopes to motivate all cultures, but specifically, urge Black men to take control of our choices, our communities, and our futures through getting involved and leading communities to make changes. We have all we need to be better…it’s time to make a choice.

"Numbers...A Gangsta's Child", based on true events, is a fascinating story about a young southern girl who leaves her parent's home to seek success on Wall Street. While she pursues the American dream, a chain of events leads her into the underworld of organized crime, a dark and dangerous place where she is challenged by men in power. Against all odds STEELE rises to the top of her game as a MOB BOSS.

In this thorough update of one of the classic texts of media and cultural studies, Douglas Kellner argues that media culture is now the dominant form of culture that socializes us and provides and plays major roles in the economy, polity, and social and cultural life. The book includes a series of lively studies that both illuminate contemporary culture and society, while providing methods of analysis, interpretation, and critique to engage contemporary U.S. culture. Many people today talk about cultural studies, but Kellner actually does it, carrying through a unique mixture of theoretical analysis and concrete discussions of some of the most popular and influential forms of contemporary media culture. Studies cover a wide range of topics including: Reagan and Rambo; horror and youth films; women’s films, the TV series Orange is the New Black and Hulu’s TV series based on Margaret Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale; the films of Spike Lee and African American culture; Latino films and cinematic narratives on migration; female pop icons Madonna, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga; fashion and celebrity; television news, documentary films, and the recent work of Michael Moore; fantasy and science fiction, with focus on the cinematic version of Lord of the Rings, Philip K. Dick and the Blade Runner films, and the work of David Cronenberg. Situating the works of media culture in their social context, within political struggles, and the system of cultural production and reception, Kellner develops a multidimensional approach to cultural studies that broadens the field and opens it to a variety of disciplines. He also provides new approaches to the vexed question of the effects of culture and offers new perspectives for cultural studies. Anyone interested in the nature and effects of contemporary society and culture should read this book.

This definitive guide to hip-hop teaches kids about the history and world-wide cultural impact of the genre, covering everyone from early heroes like The Sugar Hill Gang, Kurtis Blow, and Run D.M.C., to modern day titans like Kanye West, Cardi B, and Kendrick Lamar. In the 1970s, a musical and cultural movement was sparked in the Bronx neighborhood of New York City. Led by three DJs who performed at local block parties, DJ Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grandmaster Flash become known as the “Holy Trinity” of hip-hop and they helped establish the four main pillars of the genre: deejaying, mc'ing, break dancing, and graffiti art. From these early days, acclaimed journalist and music critic Jordannah Elizabeth takes kids on a journey through the history of hip-hop, helping young readers understand how and why it was invented, and how it evolved into a powerful platform that gave (and still gives) a voice to the often-ignored Black community in America. From Tupac Shakur and Ms. Lauryn Hill to Drake and Tyler the Creator, kids will celebrate some of hip-hop’s biggest names while learning about the roots of their musical sounds, and the community that propelled them into stardom. Packed with modern, charming illustrations, including a pull-out poster for kids to color, A Child’s Introduction to Hip-Hop features age-appropriate descriptions of a musical genre that is changing the world and dominating the airwaves. This is the perfect book for young students who want to know more about the world of hip-hop and rap, as well as for parents who want to introduce their children to some of their favorite artists.

This book is the story of the reality of New York street gang in the late 90s to present. It is about the violence, the passion, the despair, the pain, the loyalty, and the disloyalty. It is the true story of the destruction of families caused by violence, incarceration and racism. It is about murder, rape, betrayal, and the injustice of the justice system. This is a society that fails to protect, defend, educate, rehabilitate, and inspire young people to succeed and families to grow and flourish. It’s the Bronx and rawness of the ghetto. It’s the true life story of actual individuals with their identities masked to protect them from further harm. Blacks, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Latin Americans, Muslims, Israelites, and the police are all engaged in a battle to dominate and to survive. The backdrop is the Bronx, the inner city and one of poorest congressional districts in the United States. It is about a failing school system, the question of race, the history of conflict, and the brainwashing of a society to ignore the truth and keep living a lie. The games they play out in the street pit females against females, and the cost is not being able to trust anyone or anything. Ask yourself the question, Could you survive this world? Can anyone survive this world? This is the world that some people live in, some people fear, and some people have never heard of. It is also the world that those in power don’t want you to know about so that they can continue to profit off the misery and suffering of people fighting, trying, and doing their best to keep each other down. They’re down lower than you can ever imagine or believe someone can go.