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Preserve the essence of emceeing Teach new emcees to learn how to rap Teach
current emcees how to improve their rap skills Save rappers years of trial and error in their pursuit of a career in
rap Provide aspiring emcees with advice from other successful rappers Breakdown various aspects of the rap game Help aspiring hip hop artists manuever in the music industry
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Subscribe to The State of Hip Hop E-Zine and get all of our latest hip hop book and video recommendations first!!
The Best Hip Hop Books
We call these hip hop books not because they are all solely focused on the culture - many are not. Instead, because one of our site's main points is that emcees need a strong foundation or base of knowledge.
With that said, roughly once a month we will feature a book that will expand your knowledge on hip-hop, business, current affairs, society, making money and more...all guaranteed to be eye-opening and interesting.
Note: All of these books are books that I have personally read, and most of which I own. So I am not just recommending blindly like a lot of other places.
Featured
Hip Hop Book (March '08)With our pick for March I wanted to focus on the rap game. Russell Simmons is without a doubt one of the forefathers of the game. Though this book is already listed in our "Biographies" section, I recently gave it a second read and found it to be much more than just that.
LIFE AND DEFRussell Simmons
A member of D12 once said that he got all the game he needed to maneuver in the industry by reading "a Russell Simmons book". While D12 might not be the best spokesmen they were actually on to something.
The first time I picked up this book about 3 or 4 years ago I gave it a quick read and though I thought it was an awesome biography I didn't pick up on the underlying lessons it contained. In telling the story of his life, Russell Simmons taps into the mindset of the youthful inner-city culture of the late 70's and early 80's which was to give rise to the most widespread and influential subculture in modern history...hip-hop.
This man has not only lived "the game" but studied it, analyzed it, and has given it great thought. His insights are akin to taking a maketing course from a world-class professor. If you're entrepreneurial minded you should take note of the business decisions he's made while coming up and learn from his successes and failures when plotting your own paths to success.
If you would like to understand why large groups of people like certain things at certain points in time and are interested in relating that to not only hip-hop but to your personal goals in life...you absolutely must read this book. If anything it will raise your street smarts.
You can find Life and Def on Amazon
for a great price (even cheaper if you buy it used) -TSOHH Hip Hop Book Categories
BiographiesThis section features biographies of both hip hop and non-hip hop related individuals. Learn the ropes of the music business, the street, and more through the real life experiences of others.
Business & Money AdviceThis section includes books with a central theme of business and money-making. Start making money young...If you're really interested in stacking paper check out these selections.
Culture, Society
& Current AffairsLearn about current issues, censored news stories, and gain knowledge about society through topics from around the world. Expand your knowledge on a BUNCH of topics here.
Urban
FictionCheck out some of these new and classic works of fiction. You'll find stories inspiring enough to crush any writers' block. Read up and learn how to weave a tale like these master authors.
The
Music BusinessHere's where you can gather up information on the music industry or anything music related. Hip hop, rap, radio, the recording industry, look for a great book about it here.
Miscellaneous Good BooksHere's where you'll find all the other books new emcees might be interested in reading while trying to build that base of knowledge. Read up on science, history, seduction, becoming a wordsmith and other craziness here.
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