A cofounder of the musical group Talking Heads, David Byrne has also released several solo albums in addition to collaborating with such noted artists as Twyla Tharp, Robert Wilson, and Brian Eno. His…
A journalist for thirty-five years, Mark Seal is a contributing editor at Vanity Fair and the author of Wildflower: An Extraordinary Life and Mysterious Death in Africa, about the murdered wildlife fi…
Curtis James Jackson III (born July 6, 1975), known professionally as "50 Cent," is an American rapper, songwriter, television producer, actor, and entrepreneur. Known for…
Michael Aloisi is the author of over a dozen published books, including his latest, A Life With Ghosts (Simon & Schuster). Having written numerous celebrity biographies, including ones for film legend…
Robert Fitzgerald Diggs, better known by his stage name RZA, is an American music producer, multi-instrumentalist, author, rapper, actor, director, composer, and screenwriter. A prominent figure in hi…
Dan Charnas is the author of the definitive history of the hip-hop business, The Big Payback (NAL/Penguin). He’s also the author of Work Clean (Rodale/Harmony), a book detailing applying chefs’ techni…
Shawn Corey Carter, better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and e…
Albert Johnson, better known by his stage name Prodigy, was an American rapper and entrepreneur who, with Havoc, was one half of the hip hop duo Mobb Deep.
Patrick Parr's first book was The Seminarian: Martin Luther King Jr. Comes of Age, a 2019 Washington State Book Award finalist. The book was the culmination of five years of research, which included m…
Rakim reigns as one of hip-hop’s most transformative artists. Along with his partner Eric B., he recorded 1987’s Paid in Full, the landmark recording that MTV named "the greatest hip-hop album of all …
Ahmir Khalib Thompson, known professionally as ?uestlove or Questlove (also known as BROther ?uestion, Questo, Brother Question or Qlove), is an American drummer, DJ, music journalist and record produ…
Joseph Antonio Cartagena, better known by his stage name Fat Joe, is a rapper, actor, and entrepreneur from the birthplace of hip-hop, the Bronx. He released his first solo album, Represent, in 1993, …
Born Lamont Jody Hawkins, U-God is an American rapper and hip-hop artist and one of the founding members of the legendary Wu-Tang Clan. A native New Yorker, Raw is his first book.
Jay Wayne Jenkins, better known by his stage name Jeezy, is an American rapper and an influential figure in southern hip hop. Along with fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Gucci Mane, Jeezy is cred…
Chris Herring is a senior writer for Sports Illustrated. He previously spent five years covering the NBA for ESPN and FiveThirtyEight, and prior to that spent seven years at The Wall Street Journal, w…
