Rap la science du flow

by Paul Edwards

Examining the dynamics of hip-hop from every region and in every form-mainstream and underground, current and classic-this compelling how-to discusses everything from content and flow to rhythm and delivery in relation to the art and craft of rap. Compiled from the most extensive research on rapping to date, this first-of-its-kind guide delivers countless candid and exclusive insights from more than 100 of the most critically acclaimed artists in hip-hop-including Clipse, Cypress Hill, Nelly, Public Enemy, Remy Ma, Schoolly D, A Tribe Called Quest, and will.i.am-unraveling the stories behind their art and preserving a wealth of the genre's history through the words of the legends themselves. Exhaustively detailing the many complex aspects of rapping-such as utilizing literary tools and devices to strengthen content, battling, imagery, similes, metaphors, analogies, slang, performing both live and in the studio, word play, controversial content and punchlines, and constructing beats, singles, and freestyling-with emphasis on enunciating and breathing for unique vocal style, this remarkable book will benefit beginners and pros alike with its limitless wealth of rapping lore and insight.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Hip Hop, Art, Cultural, Writing, Self Help

400 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Mariel · Rating 4 out of 5]

"You send the songs out there 'cause it's true that things kind of land in your backyard like meteorites. Songs can have a real effect on you- songs have been known to save lives. Some of them are little paramedics. Or maybe some will be killers. Some will die on the windshield. And some of them will never leave home. You beat them but they never leave. Others can't wait to get out of here, and will never write. They're ungrateful little bastards. There's only one reason to write more songs. It's what Miles Davis said. Because you're tired of the old ones."

Tom Waits is a wise man, and probably the coolest person who ever lived, a real live life wire/branch for me to perch on/hang on to for I hope it's gonna be a dear life. That quote is not in this book, of course, but it just fits. What I took away from it more than anything else (look for my first hip-hop album to drop any day now) was how conscious rappers are of other rappers. Rappers LOVE to rap about rapping. I recently came across something written by Slug (of Atmosphere) about a Brother Ali song ("Take Me Home") being a first song in songs for rappers about rappers. I have a hard time believing that baby didn't cut its own umbilical cord and announce "It's a boy..." Followed by some glorifying rhymes and more name dropping. It names itself. Battle rapping is infamous, of course, a venue to make a name or a place to die like one of those carcasses from The Lion King while the hyaneas laugh at you even while they are forgetting your name (that's bad because those guys are like known for name calling). Or it's exactly like in 8 Mile and the rag tag misfit in a hoodie outstrips Whoopie Goldberg in her returning champ Hollywood Squares track suit. Has-beens? Still making the circuit? Are you only as good as your last record? I would be a sucky rapper judging by how many times I just used "name". What surprised me is how it seemed like rappers are kids who have to knock their parents down in order to grow up. The next movement, more impressive rhymes, the new sound (in some ways its backtracking. It's acceptable now to rhyme a word with the same word). At the same time, they want their old hero to guest on their track. Chuck D's old hunger will never grow cold, unless it is best to be eaten like revenge. I don't know if I believe them about the simple rhymes being old hat. I mean, The Cat in the Hat is awesome. What appeals to me about rap is the idea of free styling. I'm truly happy when I let my mind flow and where I can go surprises me. People coming together and trying to knock each others socks off with ideas. It's playing like kids. You've got what's around you and what you can make out of that with what is in your head. Not doing it to take away their socks. I know that side exists, but I don't really want to think about it when thinking about HOW to rap. I think I'll just ignore will.i.am's cynical take on judging what your opponent is going to say before he has said anything. Oh, he's got a bit of 2pac in him so I'll come back at him with that. Oh, it looks like he's going to do LL. Do you want to decide what someone is going to say before they say it? It appeals to me a lot about rap that these guys will be so taken with some swell rhyme that everyone knows those words. They want to do that too. People knowing what they said. It's sad to think of those Kool G Rap guys trying to stay atop of the trends in rap when they should be making the trends, not going with them. Shouldn't it work for you? It's not raps fault if it doesn't, if too many people sound the same. Waits is right. Those songs have lives of their own. You can listen to them whenever. Tired of the old ones maybe not. I like that you can rap with past and now, not over. It's like how people get their hearts broken every day. Uh, maybe I meant people are born every day.

Paul Edwards' book How to Rap: The Art and Science of the Hip-Hop MC didn't tell me much more that I couldn't get from just paying attention. There's sound advice from a who's who in mainstream and underground rap (keep in mind the publication date is 2009. Kayne didn't loom as large as Eminem, Def Jux was still in operation and I hadn't heard of interviewee Zumbi from Zion I until July of this year. There's always going to be eye rolling when "underground" is dropped. "No one listens to Grieves!" "They get 25,000 youtube hits!" Tell that to the average giant KIA rodents, I say). Murs (a good example of straddling the mainstream/underground line in the shared bedroom) advises to stay in shape to take your audience's breath away instead of your own. Read a lot to keep up an impressive vocabulary, things like that. I imagine it would work as a sort of pep talk to remind oneself that they are on the right track. Write all of the time, send yourself voicemails to remember the flow. Something to not feel alone in what could be a lonely creative process. An aspiring rapper would probably already listen to a lot of rap, right? I can see that it would be good for a rapper to have all of this stuff in one place. The Lady of Rage felt better about taking time to come up with her rhymes when she found out that Eminem and Dr. Dre take days to write their own. Less lonely is good.

The book is divided into sections. Topic "Content" umbrellas real-life, fictional, controversial, conscious and club/party. I liked the way the advice from all of the rappers was laid out like it was the same conversation, although I doubt any of them were in the same room (it wouldn't surprise me if some were lifted from other interviews). It was kind of like reading The Beatles: Anthology in that way. I could drift off into the Apple corp board room and watch Neil Aspinall look all growed up in a Barbie hippie day to golf night suit dispensing money advice and still sound like he was still driving the tour van. You can rap about whatever the hell you want to rap about if you can put people where you want them. I'm not so sure about what Guerilla Black means about B.I.G's hands on the wheel of his Phantom becoming my hands. (I don't know about you but I've had it with musicians taking over my driving. David Lee Roth can get his hands out of my seat. That's for Jesus!) I remember finding all of that stuff boring as watching yet another video on YO! MTV raps about rich people or was it MTV Cribs or Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous? Can't remember. It was boring. Anyway, it bordered a line between helpful or not helpful depending on who was talking. The connecting with your audience is sound advice if you want to build up a following or have listeners at all. 2Pac and Eminem have audiences that are all their own because they resonated with people who could see themselves in those men. It seems that one would lose their audience if they stayed in Mariah Carey's castle and never opened up about mental breakdown Barbie day to night straight jackets. Mainstream rap got real same old when it was eating caviar off of g-strings. Brother Ali insists that he writes his songs because they mean something to him and not to send a message. Some do find him preachy. I don't think he's the kind of guy to let that stop him. If you need a book to tell you to be yourself... Well, essentially that is what this is, tinged with mercenary sandman loops for smoking off the dreamers pipe. Meanwhile, will.i.am insists that the radio must be pushed to play more meaningful content than the mindless party stuff. Editor's note says that the audiences themselves demand it more and more. On that note, I don't understand why Nelly appears in this book at all. Nelly: "I like to switch flows up a lot, man, so I thought it was great." He reads like the grandmother from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory who enters conversations with no clue on what her cue is. If you want to learn how to rap, as per Nelly, just show up in the studio on the day of. Thanks, Nelly. I'll call you, when I, uh, need... I'll never call you.

Format section covers braggadicio/battling. I don't have much interest in this one. I'm as useful as Nelly here, sorry. Conceptual, story, abstract and humorous.
What better way to illustrate all of this than my heart of my heart favorite, Aesop Rock? From 'Fumes' from the None Shall Pass record.
"Pirouetting madly on a mirror full of baggies
In the valley of the irritable Aggie,
Any sincerity, miracles,or memory buried in the back-seat by the hazardous material was seriously gasping,
Here he is in action
Trying to patch up the attraction,
Figured he would win her back if he act in a common passion,
Penned a couple chapters about a sassy pair of magnets with a cottage on a hill and a picket fence and a marriage,
Never having gathered her rabid enthusiasm over language was fashioned around the aspirin his cabinets,
Asked her to read it expecting flattery after the fact,
This is an exact imitation of how she react:
"you ain't shit man, your story's a joke,
You should package it with a last smoke and 6 feet of rope",
And she know 5 chores, more coke and all fours,
Said "leave me on the floor and leave the dope by the door".
Bounced all shook up, she cook up aluminum,
Consuming every skull and crossbones in the room in under 2 minutes,
He fuming with a flipped lid,
Storm into the crib
And found her body on the tiles,
Like no she didn't.
Yes she did."
Metaphors, similes, vocab, humor, slang, imagery, wordplay, punchlines. Aes Rock robocop prototype and Jabberwocky superfly. In this book he says he doesn't set out to listen to only abstract stuff and he likes when rappers do what comes naturally to them. Me too, Mr. Rock. I would need a website like goodreads to write about every Aesop Rock song. I don't even know where to start on him. He is my favorite writer, let alone my favorite rapper. Someone might come to you and say some shit like, "That Aes Rock is all gibberish. I never know what the hell he's saying." They are metaphors, man. You gotta listen. Okay, there are references to stuff that I might have taken a few years to understand (such as a skateboarding video) but that's nothing. He's a storyteller in poetical puzzles. Sometimes just listening to one of his songs, and having to really listen to what he's saying, is the only thing that takes over the painful edges of my own mind. will.i.am is wrong. I want to listen, not predict. That stuff means a lot to me. Someone else's voice in my head. Trying to rap (pathetically) myself. You want someone to sing along with you, not be alone. The power of rap, as far as this one person is concerned, is being a person who is maybe not so alone. Sometimes I'll feel so bad, going crazy with insomnia, that listening to Eyedea & Abilities songs about being there and not being alone and smiling no matter how hard you fall keeps me going. It's what Tom Waits says about songs saving lives. He's right. Rap means a lot to me. I like that rappers talk about rap and rap about rap (even if their own obsession with rap is the tails you lose side of the coin about obnoxious bragging down side of rap). How to rap is why to rap.

I'm confused about flow. I know it's how musically they say the words, matching the rhythm in the beats, slow or sped up. How do you describe music? If it is really good you would have to spill your guts on the outside and the shapes wouldn't mirror the feelings any more than a shadow puppet would the animal it follows out of light. It's music. Does it move you? There's a flow chart in here that I don't really understand. Where you emphasize word placements. Some rappers have symbols they use that are like musical notes to remember how to do the flow when they record. I wouldn't have thought about rhyming after the beat to sound more relaxed (Snoop Dogg is given as an example of a relaxed rapper) or before to sound more urgent (Eminem). One guy says that some can rap directly on the beat but those aren't as flexible in flow if they are always on time. I hadn't thought about that before. I don't really want to think too much about how musicians record things lest I start thinking about that and not the music. My ex boyfriend was a screenwriter and he couldn't watch films without eying the timer on the dvd player for pacing. I was thankful that wasn't me. The useful stuff is the kind of stuff I don't want to think about when listening to songs. How many bars (eight or sixteen is decided as the appropriate number by some). Hey, Mariel, why you reading a book about how to rap if you're thinking about how to listen? I like the Tom Waits way of doing things. He's talking about himself as he's talking about someone else. Writing as he's listening. How to rap is like that. I imagine that making music is like listening to like ghosts in the air around you. Some place to go to to relate that's not just you and not just them. That probably wouldn't be in a how-to book. I'm worse than Nelly.

I wasn't too impressed with their example of Eminem's "Lose Yourself" (he's used a lot because he's kind of everywhere) for how to rhyme words that don't usually rhyme. It was pretty lame (the arms heavy/mom's spaghetti line). Why not Doom's Madvillainy rhyme of 'needles' with 'fritos' (from "Accordion")? I was impressed.

I don't remember the book mentioning that if you use recorded samples parts of your proceeds go to the original artist. Artists like to "cover" the music with live musicians and then they don't have to pay anyone. Since I'm Nelly's long-lost cousin I don't remember the term for that. Don't look for my own how-to rap book to hit shelves tomorrow.

Picking producers or recording your own beats. Some rappers produce for themselves and for others. If they share producers one rapper can use beats that another couldn't rap to (Slug of Atmosphere shout-outs to Brother Ali that a friend of his "tried to kill himself to the same song" when the latter couldn't do his suicide song to producer Ant's beats). There's probably a hierarchy in the upper tier for who gets first pick. Often the beats grab the audience before the words do. That's important, you wannabes.

I liked the advice to half memorize your lyrics so you don't get sick of the song and lose emotion in recording, or sound like you just memorized it. There is some good stuff in here that I wouldn't have thought of. Not that I actually need any of it. Don't tell anyone but secretly I wish that I could be a rapper (this is even more top secret than my secret dream of being a stand up comedian. Don't laugh! It's like a torture dream for someone who is painfully shy. Just because I COULDN'T do it). Sometimes I like to think of rhymes about stuff throughout my days, just to keep me interested throughout my days. I still think it's really cool that people would want to do it.

I really liked about this book that none of the rappers interviewed talked like anyone who was reading it couldn't do it. You might be recording these songs for twenty years so you want to write something you can live with, that kind of stuff (they don't say here but you might want to keep in mind that you'll be performing live and maybe loading up your lyrics with as many syllables possible will come back to bite you come show time). You ever listen to actors giving advice to potentials like it would end the world if anyone else ever tried to do it? How do they know that person wouldn't be better than them? (Maybe that's what they are worried about.) As competitive as rap is, I get the feeling that they all really want a breath of fresh air to come out. Someone who is going to renew their interest in rap just like that first artist who made them fall in love with rap in the first place. I really like that.

My first rapper? Will Smith when I was in elementary school. My class would jam to "Summertime". Good times.

"...Debating with myself whether or not raps real 'cause broke motherfuckers are the only ones who got skill." - Blueprint

It bugged me a bit that the lineup in the back of the book prints how much money the records made (pretty much any time one of those famous albums is mentioned, actually). Four million for Doggystyle. This number is ingrained in my brain. I will go to sleep tonight knowing that Tha Doggfather did not make as much money as Doggystyle. It was like reading a press bio for Catherine Keener back in the days before she became famous. "Catherine Keener, About Last Night". If you don't know, About Last Night was an '80s Rob Lowe/Demi Moore fluff piece in which Keener has a walk on role as a waitress. I don't need to say that she had many memorable roles for anyone who was paying attention. Del the Funky Homosapien is credited with his guest track for Gorillaz "Clint Eastwood" and relation to Ice Cube (cousin). No mention of Deltron 3030. I blame Nelly. If it weren't for him this review would go into how to write poetry, single line rhymes and double rhymes. Guest appearances and all the mainstays of hip hop would feature. Practice, practice, practice. Keep writing. Be yourself. I don't need to regurgitate the book. If you want to read a book about this in the first place then it's the book for you, probably.

[Maximilian Klein · Rating 2 out of 5]

How to rap is a minimally glued collection of quotes from B-list, and aging rappers. It attempts to be an informative guide, and at times a tutorial. In practice it is a compendium of mostly ineloquently articulated cliches. Virtually all the rappers, to all the questions - which are as broad ranging from topics as rhyme schemes, syncopation, live performance, and subject matter - answer sic. "I mix that shit it. It's go to be raw. It takes experience."

There were a few moments of intrigue when Paul Edwards diagrams a verse, deconstructing it. Those three paragraphs were informative and educational. Mostly however Edwards weasels out of making any point at all, and lets the rappers make their own non-points.

Biases I also noticed where that the interviews only included quotes from a) English-speaking, b) U.S. c) Male (one exception) rappers.

It also reinforced, without question the notion that rap is competitive, which I've never understood why. A missed opportunity why all these rappers were in front of the tape-recorder and coffee.

This book did not teach me how to rap, any more than my decade of intent self-lead listening.

[Enrique Santos · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I had to recommend a book to serve as an introduction to hip-hop, I wouldn't hesitate to shove this into someone's face. This is definitely going to be a book I'll keep around to thumb through whenever I'm looking for some inspiration or insight as to what goes behind a good rap or when I want to dive into where specific artists are coming from.

Edwards breaks down the creative process and divides his interview answers in a smooth, logical fashion that should be valuable to anyone who does creative work in most any field. As in most endeavors, there's more than one way to skin a cat, and the book goes over the variety of techniques and attitudes emcees have toward their work. The elements of hip-hop that this book focuses on translate well to writing music in other genres and public performance in general.

This book, combined with an Internet connection and a lazy afternoon, will give you a greater appreciation of hip-hop and the talent it takes to spit a rhyme.

[Jerel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was given to me by a friend and colleague who is an entrepreneur in the music industry. He strongly recommended it and praised it as he put it in my hand and said "Just read it." At first, I looked at the cover and when I saw "How to Rap" I kind of sighed, closed my eyes and tilted my head back. I was't that excited and enthusiastic to read the book because it sort of reminded me of one of those "Idiots Guide To..." corny instruction books. However, once I opened the book and started reading, I realized that this book was beyond just how to rap, and that it provided a platform to bridge "the art and science" of the Hop-Hop/Rap genre to rap as a whole. In addition, it provided me with a wider sense of rapping and rhyming. I mean, from the perspective of anyone who can put words together, rapping is just rhyming and making words at the end of each sentence sound the similar, but this book gets deep into what makes "good flow" and what techniques to use when writing raps. I think that the biggest plus for this book was that it offered professional advice. One of the worst things for me is when somebody tries to teach you something without having done it before, so it was good to see actual big name rappers appear in this book and offer their advice on things. However, I am very involved in the music industry and deal with rappers everyday, but this book really opened my eyes to how complex rap really is versus how simple many may think it is. It reminded me that there are a lot of elements that shape a rap artist and there are a lot of things to keep in mind as an MC. This was a surprisingly great book for me and I would actually recommend it to anyone who is interested in not only rap music, but music in general. You will definitely learn something new during this interesting read.

[Umugaba · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love rap/hip hop music, after reading this book, my love for rap/hip hop music is even greater.

I had no intention of learning how to rap but curious about what the book would say on hip hop. While the book is going through different techniques, I started to pay attention to more details while listening to rap music and realize how really beautiful this music genre is.

I thought I knew rappers but then realized I did not know 3/4 of the ones interviewed for this book. Went on and get their music to find out that there are so many, so many great rappers out there that don't get noticed on the main stream.

I will recommend this book to hip hop lovers, future rappers, to people who want to know more on hip hop and mostly to the ones who think hip hop is only about bi* n ho* and bling etc.

Great work by Paul Edwards

[Ben Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book, best one I've read on hip-hop.

They interviewed many of the best rappers ever and they have an amazing 'flow diagram' in this book to show you how rapping works. Every aspect of rapping is covered in a lot of detail, with famous rappers discussing each and every element and giving you the pros and cons to every approach.

A must-read for any real hip-hop and music fan.

[Frank Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredible book, there is so much history about hip-hop and its techniques in here...
If you're into hip-hop and rap music, then this is THE book to get, because it is all in the words of the rappers themselves and they tell you about classic tracks and all their methods and thoughts about the art form.
100% recommended, there should be more hip-hop books like this.

[Dean Tsang · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the definitive guide for anyone looking to learn how to become a rapper. Out of all the books I've read so far, this particular guide received a lot of attention from friends, and some people even ridiculed me for reading it. Yet, even though the advice and tips in this book seemed basic and came across as common sense, it was awesome how different MCs all offered alternative perspectives on the construction, practice and execution of the art.

The flow diagram also works wonders- the other reviewers were right about how useful it actually is. Before reading this, my flow was incredibly awkward, and now thanks to the flow diagram I understood the rhythm behind the flow much easier.

An extra bonus of reading this book is that you'll learn of hundreds of other MCs who you can listen to for inspiration. There's someone here to suit anyone's taste. This book is a goldmine of talented artists with every additional MC that gave their input providing me with another new MC to listen to online.

Basically, the book covers practically everything you need to know about rap, and I think that in order to fully take everything in, you'll need to occasionally glimpse through any sections that you're unsure of/wanted to revisit. But asides from that, this was a wonderful guide to read, and I heartily recommend it.

[Ajith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a hardcore hiphop listener and always wanted to know about it. I always thought myself as a HipHop know-all until I read this book. It opened a different world of lyrics, it showed me how much stuff are considered before an artist pen a rhyme. It treats hiphop with a respect it deserves. It clearly explains bars, syllables, and many other literary devices that a lyricist should use. And as the name of the book says it will teach you "HOW TO RAP".

[Jsanche52 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must read. I've been writing music since a young age, and I can honestly say that I enjoyed everything about this book. This book gives you great tips from great old school musicians and I guarantee that you won't be able to put it down once you pick it up

[Moosa Fikry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book written about Hip Hop music

[Chi Chi · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's weird to have a book read like a VH1 talking head special, but there is all sorts of interesting input from a wide variety of emcees on the particulars of their skill set.

[Vanilla Thunder · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you want to be a rapper read this book. A joyful experience from real advice from all successful artists from Kool G Rap all the way to Tech9ne

[Vivek · Rating 5 out of 5]

How to Rap: The Art and Science of the Hip-Hop MC

[Sara · Rating 2 out of 5]

More like 2 1/2 stars or something....

I'm always curious about the mechanics of writing, and I'd bought this book for my students, but decided to check it out on a whim.

I'm not entirely sure who this book is aimed at. It laboriously defines extremely basic terms and concepts like what a rhyme is! Or a metaphor, simile, or analogy. I mean, really basic stuff.

Also, most of the book consists of short quotes from rappers stitched together thematically. The quotes are little snapshots of what individual rappers think about a given topic, but most of the quotes are pretty devoid of helpfulness. Like, under the topic of "flow", there are a bunch of quotes that basically boil down to "it's really important to have good flow!". And under "rhyme" a bunch of quotes that basically just say: "rhymes are important! make sure they are good!" That kind of thing.

There are also very few actual examples of lyrics to demonstrate most of the topics covered. The strongest section for me was the one where the author does actually use lyrics to demonstrate what a flow scheme looks like, and how that compares to patterns of rhythms.

I also appreciated that rappers take the same approach as all writers do: research, first draft, and revise revise revise. And that the only way to get good at creating, is to keep creating.

[Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book might not be for everyone, but for a certain kind of brother it's essential. If you've ever found yourself on the Internets debating the finer technical points of MCing, first of all it's time for you to pause and reflect, second of all you needed this book yesterday. I already knew everything there is to know about rap music, and even I learned a few things, which means you're guaranteed to learn something. LOL

But I could also see this being a revelation for Fox News types who don't have a very high opinion of rap music, because it's mostly (still) made by black people, and because rappers are perhaps the worst possible advocates for themselves -- not that they'd ever read it. To read this book is to have an appreciation for what rappers do and just how complex it can be, for something that often that often seems kinda dumb, even if you don't necessarily care for the music.

[Carter Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think I enjoyed this book more for the MC, rapper, and hip-hop artist testimony than I did for its ability to teach me how to rap! Still a solid read nonetheless and felt like a great survey of hip-hop artists I wasn’t as familiar with. It was fun exploring! I have an EP coming out this fall ❤️

[David Hockley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a must-read if you're a fan of hip-hop.
I was lent the book by a friend who demanded that I read it if I wanted to know the real inside techniques... and I'm so glad I did! I got my own copy now, because seriously, this is a book that you'll want to go over again and again because it covers so much and there is so much to take in.

You also get a really good look into the history of hip-hop because it explains how people like Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, and Kool G Rap innovated and developed a lot of these techniques and of course it gives you everything you could need in terms of actual methods of rapping.

Honestly, if everyone read this book who is into hip-hop, then I think hip-hop would be in much better shape! Real knowledge dropped.

[Dpruess · Rating 1 out of 5]

As the 1 star suggests, this was a horrible book.Some problems:
- tons of unedited quotes rife with "ums" "likes" "kindas"
- lots of really obvious material repeated again and again, such as "people really appreciate good lyrics." Really??? Thanks!! Because before I read this book, I was strongly considering going for bad lyrics.
There were a few useful points made, and the book made reference to some good songs that I had never heard, so I benefited from checking those out (but it also made reference to a lot of bad songs that I wasted time checking out). All in all though, this book did a perfectly awful job of being helpful for an aspiring rapper.

[Clarence Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book on hip-hop, bar none!

This is wall-to-wall quotes from the best MCs of all time, they got hold of all the legends, all the classic guys, plus lots of new guys, including Slaughterhouse, Clipse, really lyrical guys, a great selection of underground artists too.

They all provide really insightful quotes on a huge range of subjects, I really can't recommend this book highly enough, it is packed with info that I have not seen anywhere else!

[Andre · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book on elements of the hip-hop game. It doesn't necessarily teach you how to rap, just what different MCs think about the elements.

[Raven]

"[from Tech N9ne] I don't believe in writer's block, because the cure for writer's block to me is to go out and have something happen to your ass. I'm always having something happening to me."

"At the end of his hit single 'Tell Me Where to Go,' produced by Lil Jon, E-40 uses several slang phrases that are associated with the Hyphy Bay Area style of music, such as 'ghost ride the whip,' 'put your stunna shades on,' 'thizz face,' and 'go stupid.'"

"Syncopation is a form of vocal styling in which an MC delivers the lyrics very slightly before or after the beat, rather than exactly on the beat."

[Nik · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a writer and avid reader of books on different types of writing, this book wasn't really a "How to" but more of a "introduction to certain rappers" and "How those subject rappers feel about older rappers he or she admires."

This book didn't give basic steps for constructing a rap. It was mostly a history of hip hop. In many instances it was pointed out where current rappers got their style.

I was disappointed because I was looking for something more technical. Possibly a beat to word break down or some mathematics you could apply to multiply and divide syllables. I was looking for a basic formula to master. Instead, it was just a book of interviews with different rap artists. For instance, it would offer a subject like "flow." Then instead of talking about a technique to create a flow it would give ten different rapper quotes about who's flow they like or how the subject rapper flows. Then they might share a few lines from a song. Nothing about how to actually create a flow.

I'm going to read the follow up to this book and hopefully it is more technical. If you are actually looking for a book that gives the basic construction of rap, this isn't a good book. If you want to know the history of hip hop, this is a good introduction.

I always rate a book based on how it changed my life. A book doesn't have to be well written or even entertaining if I walk away from it changed, it's at least worth a three. I don't have anything memorable to take away from this book. I wouldn't have given it a one, but Goodreads forces you to give it at least one star.

[Adam · Rating 5 out of 5]

"How To Rap". Without a doubt a neccesity for anyone who is serious about developing their lyrical skill and achieving mastery of the respected art of "MCing". One thing that I absolutely love about this book is Paul Edwards choice of artists to interview. This book is one hundred percent, REAL. When you read this book, you aren't getting half wit advice from a wanna-be rap knucklehead that got luky off of one single, and became irrelevant for the rest of his career when the song's hype died down. These artists were considered stars in their time and are even considered legends now. Artists like E-40, Papoose, DJ Quik, Nelly, Mobb Deep, and many others, give you valuable and vital information that is necessary for any artist to become the aspiring musical talent they hope to be in the near future. I also enjoyed reading this book not only for the advice it gave me, but the many stories that were shared with me from these artists. Stories about their struggles as poverty stricken children, failed romances, first songs, and many others were intriguing to me. It showed me that these artists went through the exact same things I have gone through, am going through, and maybe even will go through in the future. It took away all the flashing lights from their names and made me realize that they are as much a human being as I am. It showed me that I have as good a chance as making it to the top as they did. And that inspired me greatly.

[Heini · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great book for novice rappers seeking to improve their skills or for poetry buffs, who want to understand the nuts and bolts of rapping as a craft. This book is not for people with romantic ideas of art being spontaneous and just something you feel in your heart, man. This is for reductionistic nerds, who grew up disassembling their grandfather's watch just to see what made it tick, and who would like to apply the same approach to rapping.

If you've been rapping for a few years, this book isn't likely to provide any revolutionary insights or even to tell you much you didn't already know - there's a sequel for that. However, the impressive list of established rappers interviewed for the book makes it well worth a read. And who knows? Maybe even old dogs can learn new tricks. At least it's interesting when someone analyses and explains explicitly something one might have only ever understood implicitly by intuition. There is, after all, a vast difference between doing and understanding, and some times it takes someone else to explain to us what it is, exactly, we're doing before we really appreciate the subtleties involved.

Read this book. It's good.

[Ed Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is THE guide to MCing... it's funny because books went from having pretty much zero coverage of the rapping process, then this book comes out and it has EVERYTHING you could want on the subject.

They really put a lot of work into this book and it shows on every page. I don't know how they got hold of so many of the key guys to go through their styles, but I'm glad they did, because all this history is preserved for future generations of MCs to learn from.
Even if you don't want to learn to rap, this is still a book you gotta read if you're into hip-hop. You will learn so much (unless you're someone who thinks they know everything already, in which case there is no helping you!).

Greatest book I've read on the subject, looking forward to the sequel they're doing too.

[Alexx · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book because it explains the art of HipHop building from the ground up: simple rhyming patterns, to multisyllable verses with punchlines. It's interesting to see how rap truly involved over time due to technological advancement in rhyming skills :) The numerous examples brought by, tend to use the same rappers over and over again (one of the few flaws of the book), despite that, I enjoyed it, being a rap fan myself. Having said that, it seems like rap has degenerated over the last 10 or so years, which is a sad development, we will see if a new generation of rappers can pick up where the mic had been dropped.

[Martin Freecastle · Rating 5 out of 5]

As many other people have said since this book came out... it's the best book you can find on hip-hop music, and definitely on rapping.

Everyone you'd hope to find in a book of this sort was interviewed for it, so there is no way it can be faulted there.
The diagrams showing how flow works are absolutely essential to anyone who wants to learn easily and get to high level in a short time... they make it easy to see how to do complex rhymes schemes and rhythms.

Do yourself a favor if you're a hip-hop head and pick up this book, you won't be disappointed!

[Shanna]

My music book for June.

[Sukhdeep Singh · Rating 3 out of 5]

A basic introduction to rap. Good for those who want an insight into the art of rhyming to music. Also good for those who have just started rapping.