Ethnomusicology · 1995 · 243 citations · 0 references
HumanitiesCultural StudiesEthnic StudiesAfrican American Cultural StudiesAfrican American HistoryMusic SociologyAfrican American Urban HistoryBlack Music StudiesHip-hop SubculturesRap MusicHip-hop PoliticsHip-hop ResistancePortraiture Of African AmericansRace In RapRap HistoryRegional Hip-hop ScenesRegional Rap StylesWomen's Voices
Los Angeles has long been a site of diverse voices, disputes, and injustices, and the city’s rap history seeks to give a platform first to African Americans and later to many others. The book maps contemporary Los Angeles hip‑hop through a photo‑essay and oral histories, aiming to engage the scene on its own terms by documenting movements, influences, leaders, and emerging artists. It achieves this by combining a photo‑essay, introductory essays on rap history and production, a glossary, and interviews with artists such as Roy Porter, The Watts Prophets, Gill Scott Heron, Ice T, Nefertiti, Ice Cube, DJ Quik, and Eazy E.
This photo-essay, coupled with oral histories, provides a map of the contemporary hip-hop nation in Los Angeles. Bracketed by introductory essays on the history and production of the music and a glossary, the book aims to engage with the city's rap scene on its own terms, with interviews and images, documenting its movements and influences, its leaders and up-and-comers. From its beginnings, Los Angeles has been a site of multiple voices, disputes and injustices. The history of rap in this city sets out to tell these stories, providing a voice first for African Americans then, through hip-hop, for many others. Artists interviewed include: Roy Porter; The Watts Prophets; Gill Scott Heron; Ice T.; Nefertiti; Ice Cube; DJ Quik; and Eazy E.