Back in the Days by Jamel Shabazz (Photographer), Fab 5 Freddy (Introduction), Ernie Paniccioli. Shabazz's photographs celebrate the "cool" style of early hip-hop culture between 1980 and 1989. Though his work is firmly rooted in the tradition of urban street photography, Shabazz here shows his subjects striking a pose and staring straight into the camera. The resulting images become less documentary and more yearbook-like in style. At first viewing, the clothes and posturing seem almost ridiculous, until we remember the excesses of the 1980s. By comparing the styles and attitudes of this bygone era to contemporary hip-hop culture, Ernie Paniccioli's essay places Shabazz's photos within a historical and social context.
Where'd You Get Those? New York City's Sneaker Culture: 1960-1987 by Bobbito Garcia. The first of it's kind, the lavishly illustrated and remarkably comprehensive, Where'd You Get Those?, is an insider's account that traces New York City sneaker culture back to its earliest days. Describing how a small and dedicated group of sneaker consumers in the 70s and early 80s proved instrumental in establishing current corporate giants like Nike and Adidas, aficionado Bobbito Garcia writes with the exactitude and affection that only a true believer could bring.
Yes Yes Y'All: The Experience Music Project Oral History of Hip-Hop's First Decade by Jim Fricke. Based on the "Hip-Hop Nation" exhibit at Seattle's Experience Music Project and the project's ongoing Oral History Program, this history of the beginnings of hip-hop in 1970s New York City is a lavishly illustrated and lovingly compiled homage to the many artists who contributed to the birth of what soon became and remains today, more than 25 years later a worldwide cultural institution.
Broken Windows : Burning New York by James T. Murray, Karla L. Murray. In New York in the 80s graffiti moved from the subway trains to large walls which allowed it to become more refined and concept driven. Because walls provide a more stable and reliable surface they have encouraged the artists to create works of much greater depth and complexity and the form is now arguably at its peak. Although it is often indecipherable to the world at large, as Broken Windows - Burning New York shows, graffiti is a radical and daring means of visual communication.
Dondi White Style Master General: The Life of Graffiti Artist Dondi White by Andrew Witten, Michael White - Nearly 20 years after the art world began to consider graffiti a contender, one of its most recognized writers from the 70s and 80s is honored. Raised in Brooklyn's East New York neighborhood, Dondi was part of an active culture of graffiti writers. Gifted with vision, purpose and talent, Dondi also stood out for crossing boundaries within graffiti-artist and gang culture. Photographers Martha Cooper and Henry Chalfant made his work visible to the art world and had a hand in transforming subway-art culture in the process. Color photos.
The Hip Hop Years: A History of Rap - "This book is one of the first comprehensive histories of rap music and the vibrant culture surrounding it. Included are first-hand accounts by the people and groups who played vital roles in transforming rap from a mere New York City block party activity in the mid-1970s to the integral part of popular music it is today. Interviews with rap pioneer Kool Herc, Ice-T and members of Run-DMC, Public Enemy, N.W.A. and De La Soul are included."
The Vibe History of Hip Hop - "A history? No. A story, really. A tale from the dark side. In this book, hip hop is all. It's always there. Like hip hop, this book is about the intense kind of aspiration that comes from having little. About holding and rhyming into a microphone. Mixing and scratching. Guns pain blood. Desire desperation truth true love. Art and mystery and metaphor. The singularity of voice. The magnificence of ingenious sampling. The glory of a beat. This book is that story."
-- From the Preface by Danyel...
Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists - Talk about addictive: Rap Lists will run your life for at least a week after you break the spine. You'll ask it for permission to leave the crib, the way Richard Pryor had to ask his pipe. The wealth of historical detail is staggering...It's a hip hop history that picks up the challenge that hip hop has been posing to the rest of the pop world for the last twenty years.
Hip Hop America - Although it's been part of the cultural soundscape for over 25 years, hip-hop has been the focus of very few books. Nelson George, A Brooklyn native, began writing about rap back in the late 70s, when the beats and the lifestyle were not only foreign to most people, they were still underground in the black communities. Hip Hop America tells the story of rap both as an art form and a cultural and economic force--from the old Bronx nightclub the Fever to the age of Puffy. Highlighting both the major players and some of the forces behind the scenes. This book is currently available at at Amazon.com.
Ricky Powell New York City. Ricky Powell, best know for his
hip-hop photography and escapades touring with the Beastie Boys.
His site features photographs from his second
book, The Rickford Files, due to be published by St. Martin's Griffin in
mid-2000. The site also features articles by and about Powell which
have appeared in various media throughout the past ten years. Video
clips from Powell's TV talk show, Rappin' with the Rickster, will be
added to the site early next year.
The new photographs include many never-before-seen
photographs of rap artists (Run-DMC, Easy-E, Slick Rick, Beastie Boys
and others).
Ricky Powell is a photographer and writer from New York City. He has
contributed to The Source, Vibe, Grand Royal, Paper, Ego Trip, Popsmear,
High Times, and many other magazines. He co-hosts a weekly radio show
and has hosted his own Public Access cable TV show, Rappin' with the
Rickster. His first book, Oh Snap! was published in 1998 by St. Martin's Griffin and is currently available by Clicking Here.
Move the Crowd : Voices and Faces of the Hip-Hop Nation - Something of a budget-priced art book for rap fans, Move the Crowd gets over on the strength of its page-size photographs of Ice Cube, Flavor Flav, A Tribe Called Quest, and many more. The book captures this unique era through hundreds of thought-provoking quotations from the artists themselves, and alongside their powerful words, newspaper headlines and brief excerpts from other media evoke the political and cultural climate that in many ways fueled the rise of hip-hop. Gregor Ehrlich, Dimitri Ehrlich. Paperback (August 1999)
Rebel for the Hell of It : The Life of Tupac Shakur..
Tupac Shakur has been deified as a Renaissance man in gansta rap. Paralleling his fame were a series of court and jail appearances and physical attacks which ended when he was gunned down on a Las Vegas street. In this first, full-length biography of the rapper, critic Armond White attempts to make sense of Shakur's life and death, examining the larger issues of rap and ghetto culture, exploitation in the music industry, and the black struggle for self-expression. Movie rights sold to HBO. 16 photos. Click Here to Buy this Book.
Life and Def : Sex, Drugs, Money, and God.. Legendary entrepreneur Simmons's career bio reads like a history of the hip-hop movement, from his first stint as a DJ and promoter in the mid-1970s, through his cofounding of Def Jam Records and groundbreaking 1980s work with Run-DMC, the Beastie Boys and Public Enemy, to his wildly successful cable showcase Def Comedy Jam and his fashion label Phat Farm. Click Here to Buy this Book.
