What do you think?
Rate this book
Jay-Z: Essays on Hip Hop's Philosopher King
Jay-Z is one of America’s leading rappers and entrepreneurs, as well known for his music as for his business acumen. This text seeks to situate Jay-Z within his musical, intellectual and cultural context for educational study. Thirteen essays address such topics as Jay-Z’s relevance to African-American oral history, socially responsible hip hop and upward mobility in the African-American community. By observing Jay-Z through the lens of cultural studies, this study assists the teacher, student, scholar, and fan in understanding how he became such an historically significant figure. Each essay includes a set of review questions meant to spark discussion in the classroom.Instructors considering this book for use in a course may .
223 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 28, 2011
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 19, 2012
Why write a book about Jay-Z? There are several reasons, but the most compelling is that he’s a 40-something-year-old rapper who grew up in the Brooklyn projects when hip-hop was born (in the Brooklyn projects)… and he remains relevant and popular today. Jay-Z embodies the history of hip-hop, but he also controls the radio waves (both with his own music and through his businesses) and dictates where hip-hop will go in the future and who will inherit the throne. Meanwhile, as an artist, he’s a lyrical genius, tells a fascinating narrative, and knows what it’s like to be in the bottom 5% and the top 5%.
Although the book is split into three sections, the main question that most of the writers tackle in each of their essays (whether directly or indirectly) is: What does it mean for Jay-Z to promote revolutionary ideas (or at least be in a position to promote them), and choose to not implement them himself? In one essay, T. Hasan Johnson explains that, as an artist who grew up as hip-hop grew up, witnessed hip-hop as an activist tool and a battleground, and experienced the most constructive and destructive parts of the game, Jay-Z is uniquely situated to re-invigorate mainstream rap with the progressive ideals hip-hop has always engendered. He dabbles in political messages occasionally, but more often he’s selling records about Maybachs and Italian suits.
Conversely, though, he’s explicit about his discomfort with the lifestyle he leads: in the song excerpted above (and several others), he talks about “dumbing down” the content of his music because that’s how he makes a profit. Is it possible for Jay-Z to make hip-hop more socially conscious while still selling records? I definitely think so. Jay-Z won’t ever make another record that doesn’t go platinum, and he’s such a huge hip-hop figure that he doesn’t have to worry about being pigeon-holed. Especially after Watch the Throne, I think Jay-Z has set himself up to make serious changes to mainstream rap.
The essays also covered a wide variety of other fascinating topics, like Jay-Z’s masculinity (and how it’s changed significantly almost exclusively due to Beyonce) and “virtual blackness” (the ability for the audience to experience the thrills and chaos of stereotypical blackness without facing the risk of incarceration, police brutality, etc.). Another thing I liked about this compilation–Julius Bailey is clearly not writing to an exclusively academic audience. Each essay ends with really thoughtful discussion questions.
What the book lacks: a copy-editor, for one (Most Deff? Talib Quali?). Also, Cornel West's foreword is more sycophantic than it should be, which is disappointing. I wish the book had been published a year later so that there could be some academic discussion regarding Watch the Throne.
Although the book is split into three sections, the main question that most of the writers tackle in each of their essays (whether directly or indirectly) is: What does it mean for Jay-Z to promote revolutionary ideas (or at least be in a position to promote them), and choose to not implement them himself? In one essay, T. Hasan Johnson explains that, as an artist who grew up as hip-hop grew up, witnessed hip-hop as an activist tool and a battleground, and experienced the most constructive and destructive parts of the game, Jay-Z is uniquely situated to re-invigorate mainstream rap with the progressive ideals hip-hop has always engendered. He dabbles in political messages occasionally, but more often he’s selling records about Maybachs and Italian suits.
Conversely, though, he’s explicit about his discomfort with the lifestyle he leads: in the song excerpted above (and several others), he talks about “dumbing down” the content of his music because that’s how he makes a profit. Is it possible for Jay-Z to make hip-hop more socially conscious while still selling records? I definitely think so. Jay-Z won’t ever make another record that doesn’t go platinum, and he’s such a huge hip-hop figure that he doesn’t have to worry about being pigeon-holed. Especially after Watch the Throne, I think Jay-Z has set himself up to make serious changes to mainstream rap.
The essays also covered a wide variety of other fascinating topics, like Jay-Z’s masculinity (and how it’s changed significantly almost exclusively due to Beyonce) and “virtual blackness” (the ability for the audience to experience the thrills and chaos of stereotypical blackness without facing the risk of incarceration, police brutality, etc.). Another thing I liked about this compilation–Julius Bailey is clearly not writing to an exclusively academic audience. Each essay ends with really thoughtful discussion questions.
What the book lacks: a copy-editor, for one (Most Deff? Talib Quali?). Also, Cornel West's foreword is more sycophantic than it should be, which is disappointing. I wish the book had been published a year later so that there could be some academic discussion regarding Watch the Throne.
Displaying 1 of 1 review