Hip Hop Culture

From Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's "The Message," to Jay-Z, Diddy, and 50 Cent, is the first comprehensive reference work to focus on one of the most influential cultural phenomena of our time. Scholarly and streetwise, backed by statistics, documents, and research, it recounts three decades of Hip Hop's evolution, highlighting its defining events, recordings, personalities, movements, and ideas, as well as society's response. How did an inner-city subculture, all but dismissed in the early 1980s, become the ruler of the world's airwaves and iPods? Who are the players who moved Hip Hop from the record bins to the pinnacles of entertainment, business, and fashion? Who are the founders, innovators, legends, and major players? Authoritative and authentic, provides a wealth of information and insights for students, educators, and anyone interested in the ways pop culture reflects and shapes our lives.