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STEWdio: The Naphic Grovel ARTrilogy of Chuck D
Chuck D (Public Enemy, Prophets of Rage, etc.) brings his personal insights and social critiques to the page in fierce, passionate, and evocative visual art and prose
Legendary hip-hop artist and social activist Chuck D has used every opportunity in his groundbreaking career to stand up for civil rights. His rap group Public Enemy is widely regarded as a revolutionary act both in terms of its impact on hip-hop and its use of music to impart a message of race and class equality. The band emerged from the late 1970s/early ‘80s coalescence of rap, punk, and street art into hip-hop music culture on the East Coast. At the time, Chuck D had completed his BFA in graphic design, and while his music career exploded, his passion for visual art never left his heart.
In February 2020, he turned his gaze once again to the page, and began to fill three 5 x 8 journals with his written and drawn reflections of a world beginning to unravel. The Naphic Grovel ARTrilogy of Chuck D recreates format of his original art, combining three full-color paperback bound books into a beautiful box set. The box set is the inaugural offering from Enemy Books, the new Akashic Books imprinted curated by Chuck D.
Spanning the onset of COVID-19 through the first year of the Joe “Bye-Don” administration, Chuck D lends his powerful artistic voice to one of the most tumultuous periods in American history, and puts it in a capsule. Like the neo-expressionist graffiti art of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Chuck D’s energetic “Naphic Grovels” marry text with drawings, commenting on contemporary events with the same activist instinct that propelled Public Enemy’s “music-with-a-message” reputation. His inventive, Amiri Baraka–esque language and accompanying art is also occasionally used as a tool for introspection, providing unparalleled insight into one of the most important cultural figures of our time.
Each journal follows a distinct period in Chuck D’s (and America’s) life; There’s a Poison Goin On chronicles the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, from February–April 2020; 45 Daze of REaD Octobot follow the days leading up to and the aftermath of the historic 2020 election; and Datamber Mindpaper, which focuses on the early days of the Biden administration.
No song may be more reflective of 1980s America than Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power;” no document may come to capture our COVID era like Chuck D’s STEWdio.
Legendary hip-hop artist and social activist Chuck D has used every opportunity in his groundbreaking career to stand up for civil rights. His rap group Public Enemy is widely regarded as a revolutionary act both in terms of its impact on hip-hop and its use of music to impart a message of race and class equality. The band emerged from the late 1970s/early ‘80s coalescence of rap, punk, and street art into hip-hop music culture on the East Coast. At the time, Chuck D had completed his BFA in graphic design, and while his music career exploded, his passion for visual art never left his heart.
In February 2020, he turned his gaze once again to the page, and began to fill three 5 x 8 journals with his written and drawn reflections of a world beginning to unravel. The Naphic Grovel ARTrilogy of Chuck D recreates format of his original art, combining three full-color paperback bound books into a beautiful box set. The box set is the inaugural offering from Enemy Books, the new Akashic Books imprinted curated by Chuck D.
Spanning the onset of COVID-19 through the first year of the Joe “Bye-Don” administration, Chuck D lends his powerful artistic voice to one of the most tumultuous periods in American history, and puts it in a capsule. Like the neo-expressionist graffiti art of Jean-Michel Basquiat, Chuck D’s energetic “Naphic Grovels” marry text with drawings, commenting on contemporary events with the same activist instinct that propelled Public Enemy’s “music-with-a-message” reputation. His inventive, Amiri Baraka–esque language and accompanying art is also occasionally used as a tool for introspection, providing unparalleled insight into one of the most important cultural figures of our time.
Each journal follows a distinct period in Chuck D’s (and America’s) life; There’s a Poison Goin On chronicles the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, from February–April 2020; 45 Daze of REaD Octobot follow the days leading up to and the aftermath of the historic 2020 election; and Datamber Mindpaper, which focuses on the early days of the Biden administration.
No song may be more reflective of 1980s America than Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power;” no document may come to capture our COVID era like Chuck D’s STEWdio.
373 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 6, 2023
2 people are currently reading
22 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
July 29, 2023
I listened to Public Enemy for a brief moment and now I wished I paid more attention to them. Be that as it may, I'm glad that Chuck D continues to be the social activist, truth speaker and multitalented person today. Volume 1 of this art trilogy, appropriately titled "There's a Poison Goin On!" Chuck D writes about and illustrates events that happened between February-April 2020. From the death of rap artists, to the corona virus, to his social commentary on other events that most of us either ignored or disregarded. Volume 2, "45 Daze of Read October" covers Trump's campaign from September-November 2020. Filled with words and illustrations that are unapologetically honest and graphic, Chuck D continues to make social commentaries on the US political process, Trump, and so much more. The third volume, "Datamber Mindpaper" shifts to "screenagers", the cellphone, and technology. Chuck D says on the back cover, "I don't recall any service going down while everyone was locked down. Makes you wonder about all the 5G talk and how maybe they had to stop the world in order to get a new reboot. One thing we know is that humans are attached physically and emotionally to their gadgets and AI is never gonna get dumber." Indeed. Whether you agree or disagree with Chuck D, you need to read this trilogy and draw your own conclusions.
July 7, 2024
A pleasant library surprise from an unpleasant time. A rough time for musicians, concerts and contact are a big part of their daily bread. Didn't know Chuck D would turn his pen to paper for anything besides lyrics.
And quick searching now, I do see he was on the art scene before Covid-19 - check out : https://www.gettyimages.com/editorial...
Anyways the first book has a darkness, drawing from the time perhaps and maybe that sort of sibling tug of love/hate/exasperation that he has with Flavor Flav. Anyways the first book is more of a diary, and really captured as such, including printed bleed-through representation on every other page. A nice touch. Sleight of hand, shades of the man.
The second book feels more like its lyrical angst (and maybe just isolation blues in general). Covid taking over, and the rhymes are as heavy-handed as the times. The "Cult 45" hangover dampens many pages.
The third book a triumph, a little more poetic and his angular portrait skills clearly on display. As his love for his Dad. Spells out datamber, zooming in and out across digital divides.
Bottom line, he kept his creative (and perhaps financial) soul alive during tough times.
And quick searching now, I do see he was on the art scene before Covid-19 - check out : https://www.gettyimages.com/editorial...
Anyways the first book has a darkness, drawing from the time perhaps and maybe that sort of sibling tug of love/hate/exasperation that he has with Flavor Flav. Anyways the first book is more of a diary, and really captured as such, including printed bleed-through representation on every other page. A nice touch. Sleight of hand, shades of the man.
The second book feels more like its lyrical angst (and maybe just isolation blues in general). Covid taking over, and the rhymes are as heavy-handed as the times. The "Cult 45" hangover dampens many pages.
The third book a triumph, a little more poetic and his angular portrait skills clearly on display. As his love for his Dad. Spells out datamber, zooming in and out across digital divides.
Bottom line, he kept his creative (and perhaps financial) soul alive during tough times.
January 15, 2025
While I have never scoured through the entire Public Enemy discography I do find Chuck D to be a force to be reckoned with in the world of hip hop. Very few artists are as bold and confident as he is in his artistry. It is neat to see him pivot into a different branch of creating things but if I just take the work at face value it definitely doesn't feel like the best finished product he could have put forward. I get a shaky chaotic style for the sake of theme but there are times it is straight up illegible and the flow of reading is so disjointed from page to page. Outside of formatting concerns it does seem to be that Covid is the background menace while his Flava Flav dispute takes the foreground which works a little bit but considering Chuck D is known for being a commentor on moments in society over personal issues it doesn't feel like it is quite in his typical wheel house.
Like I said it is neat to see that he is pursuing this and I will definitely check something else out that he does in the illustrative world if it is tighter in style and more grounded in social issues.
Like I said it is neat to see that he is pursuing this and I will definitely check something else out that he does in the illustrative world if it is tighter in style and more grounded in social issues.
January 22, 2024
Let Chuck D. show you the last several years through his eyes. Topics include COVID, crime, law, music, politics and global tensions. Chuck D. tells you what it is like trying to be creative in a time of chaos; when the forces that are supposed to hold us all together start to fall apart - and the people are let to find solutions themselves. A powerful and unique vision.
June 16, 2023
Chuck D's keen, quick-witted observations of COVID, "45", and general current events are as astute and vital as his best work with P.E. His excellent pen & ink/watercolor illustrations are just the icing on the cake.
January 1, 2026
Somehow I only read volume 2? It was surprisingly good, in a 'oof, those were horrible times' sort of way. A 3.5 rounded up. The artwork has a real courtroom sketch artist feel, but not in a bad way. I'm glad to have read it.
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September 13, 2023Read Volume 1 on 8-30-23
Read volumes 2+3 on 9-13-23
Read volumes 2+3 on 9-13-23
May 4, 2024
So much drama, so much history, so much politics and of course music, presented intimately through these journal-like drawings
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews