Description: "A comprehensive fifty-year history of the hip-hop genre"--
Brief description: Ben Greenman is a New York Times bestselling author and New Yorker contributor who has written both fiction and nonfiction. His novels and short-story collections include The Slippage and Superbad. He has been Questlove's collaborator on a series of books, including Mo' Meta Blues, Creative Quest, and Music Is History, and he has written memoirs with Sly Stone, George Clinton, and Brian Wilson. His writing has appeared in numerous publications.
Review Quotes:
"There's no one like Ahmir -- and there's no one better to take us on this fun, informative journey through hip-hop's evolution.'"
--Michelle Obama
--Shannon Carlin, Time Magazine
"A wonderful ride, colored by personal digressions and crisp observations."
--Dorian Lynskey, The Guardian "[Questlove] is an affable and expert tour guide through the annals of hip-hop, as adept at spinning yarns as he is at spinning records."
--G'Ra Asim, The Washington Post "A trip worth taking. Questlove's embedded narration of the infamous 1995 Source Awards . . . shows the author at his storytelling best."
--AD Carson, Los Angeles Times "[Questlove is] a major artist and a major fan. With co-author Ben Greenman, [he] covers 50 years of hip-hop with insight, passion and the geeky love of a true believer. Not to be missed."
--Michael Giltz, Parade
"Like a window looking deep into the workings of a pretty special hip-hop mind . . . Entertaining and authoritative . . . [Questlove] uses his knowledge and experience to his advantage in every way, bringing unique and fresh perspectives. His well-honed instincts are spot-on . . . Immensely entertaining."
--Pop Matters "Hip-hop's most accomplished musician on the musical masterpieces of hip-hop: this is the story Questlove was born to write. It's as authoritative, as opinionated, as expansive--even his digressions have (amazing) digressions!--and as joyful as we have come to expect from him. If you've ever cared about this music, no matter what the era, you need this book on your shelf."
--Jeff Chang, author of Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation and Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America Questlove is the rare history-maker in music with the ability to tell that history with gripping, personal prose and the perspective of a scholar. Hip-hop's historian laureate, Questlove helped shape the genre's critical beatdown as an artist, but writes about it with a scholar's critical perspective. No figure so pivotal in a genre's history has ever written so comprehensively and insightfully as its historian."--Dan Charnas, author of Dilla Time and The Big Payback "A memorable, masterful history of the first 50 years of an indelible American art form. . . Questlove's instincts as a superfan and artist take this history beyond the hype to something very special."
--Kirkus Reviews (starred review) "Questlove closely examines the social, political, and artistic factors contributing to hip-hop's growth, many facets and styles, stars, controversies, innovations, and far-ranging influence. This is a must-read . . . Questlove's illuminating and insightful survey is as personal as it is expert."
--Booklist (starred review) "A kaleidoscopic chronicle of hip-hop's 50-year history. . . Throughout, Questlove interweaves sharp and lyrical analyses of hip-hop's evolution with fascinating, up-close recollections of the genre's turning points. . . an exuberant account of a dynamic musical genre and the cultural climate in which it evolved."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)