嘻哈美國

by Nelson George, 尼爾遜．喬治, 何穎怡 (Translator)

《嘻哈美國》一書裡，尼爾遜．喬治（舉世最具洞見的嘻哈文化作家──《滾石雜誌》語）以第一人稱帶領我們進行一場嘻哈歷史之旅。從它的七０年代源頭到它竄起成為一股文化力量，再到今日它的影響力顯現在電影、時尚、廣告與運動各領域裡。它探索黑人青年文化與大眾媒體在過去二十年裡發生的碰撞，以及這些碰撞如何改變社會。此書觸及毒品、時尚、監禁、籃球、企業、科技、語言等議題。尼爾遜．喬治檢視嘻哈的各個面向──音樂、時尚、商業、迷思、道德力量，探索它如何投入企業美國的懷抱，不光是為了觸及黑人聽眾，更懷抱觸及所有年輕消費者的野心。從「閃手大師」到「人民公敵」到「吹牛老爹」，《嘻哈美國》告訴我們嘻哈文化在過去二十多年如何跨過所有障礙，緊緊扣住美國心弦。

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Hip Hop, History, African American, Cultural, Cultural Studies

294 pages, Paperback

First published April 26, 1998

About the author

Nelson George is an author, filmmaker, television producer, and critic with a long career in analyzing and presenting the diverse elements of African-American culture.

Queen Latifah won the Golden Globe for playing the lead in his directorial debut, the HBO movie 'Life Support'. The critically acclaimed drama looked at the effects of HIV on a troubled black family in his native Brooklyn, New York. He recently co-edited, with Alan Leeds, 'The James Brown Reader (Plume)', a collection of previously published articles about the Godfather of Soul that date as far back the late '50s. Plume published the book in May '08.

He is an executive producer on two returning cable shows: the third season of BET's American Gangster and the fifth airing of VH1's Hip Hop Honors. George is the executive producer of the Chris Rock hosted feature documentary, Good Hair, a look at hair weaves, relaxers and the international black hair economy that's premiering at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.


Nelson George serves as host of Soul Cities, a travel show that debuted in November 2008. on VH1 Soul. Nelson visited Los Angeles, New Orleans, Philadelphia, Memphis, New Orleans and the Bay Area. He eats food, visits historic sites, and hears lots of music. LaBelle, Robin Thicke, Babyface, Rafael Saadiq, Angie Stone and Jazmine Sullivan are among the many artists who talked with Nelson and perform. The second season starts shooting in Spring 2009.

Throughout the '80s and '90s George was an columnist for Billboard magazine and the Village Voice newspaper, work that led him to write a series of award winning black music histories: 'Where Did Our Love Go: The Rise and Fall of the Motown Sound'; 'The Death of Rythm & Blues'; and 'Hip Hop America'. He won a Grammy for his contribution to the linear notes package on the James Brown 'Star Time' boxed set. George co-wrote 'Life and Def', the autobiography of his old friend Russell Simmons. He's also had a career writing fiction, including the bestselling 'One Woman Short', and the story, 'It's Never Too Late in New York', which has been in several anthologies of erotica.

As a screenwriter George co-wrote 'Strictly Business', which starred Halle Berry, and 'CB4', a vehicle for Chris Rock. His work with Rock led to his involvement with 'The Chris Rock Show', an Emmy award winning HBO late night series. He was an executive producer of Jim McKay's film, 'Everyday People', which premiered at the Sundance festival, and Todd Williams' Peabody award winning documentary 'The N Word'. In 2009 Viking will publish his memoir, 'City Kid', a look at the connections between childhood in Brooklyn and his adult career in Manhattan, Los Angeles and Detroit.

Reviews

[Holden Roy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is delightful. Chris Rock's endorsement on the cover is far from hyperbolic. I like Chris Rock.
More importantly this book is a cultural gem that shines light on a plethora of components that make up the history and evolution of Hip Hop's culture both in America and even touches on the international presence.

If you are a lover of music and history, this mo'fucker right here is a must read.

[Steven H · Rating 5 out of 5]

A HISTORICAL LOOK AT HIP HOP’S AESTHETIC AND CULTURE

Nelson George (born 1957) is an American author, columnist, music and culture critic, journalist, and filmmaker.

He wrote in the Introduction to this 1998 book, “[This book] looks at how hip hop’s aesthetic was created, mutated, and affected America (and the world) in the last three decades of the twentieth century… It is about the society-altering collision that has taken place during the last two decades between black youth culture and the mass media, about the discovery (and maybe hijacking) of black youths as creators and consumers. It looks explicitly at how advertisers, magazines, MTV, fashion companies, beer and soft drink manufacturers, and multimedia conglomerates like Time-Warner have embraced hip hop as a way to reach not just black young people but ALL young people.” (Pg. ix)

He continues, “[The book] is actually the biography of two overlapping generations—‘old school’ hip hop people, who gravitated to the music right out of disco and funk (1977 to 1987), and the newer generation who have grown up with Run-D.M.C., Kurtis Blow, among others… [The book] does not offer a chronological account that tells you, in order, who cut what record, made what clothing deal, moved to what label, bought or sold what creation. Instead, I tell the stories of individuals who either perfectly reflect a particular trend, for better or ill, or who contributed something special to the culture’s growth.” (Pg. xiii)

In the first chapter, he explains, “Up until this point technology was simple---recorded music in clubs came from either 7-inch singles … or 12-inch albums… What happened was that a small bit of technology labeled a ‘mixer’ was developed. The mixer allowed club DJs to shift the sound fluidly from one turntable to another, so that the party continued in a seamless flow of sound. The entire American disco experience… was predicated on this simple technological breakthrough… The continuous sound environment created an atmosphere that was more conducive to dancing, drinking, and generally expanding the aural horizons of the customers.” (Pg. 5)

He observes, “We know now that graffiti’s spray can aesthetics and street roots combined to have an impact on artists worldwide. As a sales tool, early hip hop party promoters always used graffiti artists to design their flyers and posters. Later, as the music soared into the public consciousness, there was a period in the ‘80s when nothing related to selling the culture or… pimping hip hop didn’t use some clichéd version of graffiti art… Unfortunately, in this country the overuse of graffiti style in advertising has drained the expression of its immediacy… Yet there is a youthful integrity and humor to them that reminds us in the jaded ‘90s that hip hop didn’t start as a career move but as a way of announcing one’s existence to the world.” (Pg. 13-14)

He notes, “In 1989 Public Enemy was widely accused of anti-Semitism because of public statements given by … Professor Griff… This flap… resulted in Griff’s removal from the group. Later lyrics in one of the band’s greatest records, ‘Welcome to the Terrordome’… were interpreted to be anti-Semitic… The great irony of these two infamous is-Public-Enemy-anti-Semitic controversies was how many Jews were working for and with the band at the time… If P.E. hated Jews, then they must have been applying the gangster ethos: ‘Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.’” (Pg. 58)

He recounts, “Around 1981 the E-mu Emulator, the first pure sampler, was developed and put on the market in the United States. This digital device, and the many others that followed, possessed the ability to store, manipulate, and play back any sound that had been stored in it. No musical expertise was needed to use it, though there is an inherent musicality required to understand how elements from various recordings can be arranged to create something new. But to make it work, you just had to know how to push the buttons.” (Pg. 92) He adds, “Sampling’s flexibility gave hip hop-bred music makers the tools to create tracks that not only were in the hip hop tradition but allowed them to extend that tradition… [It] has made live instrumentation seem, at best, an adjunct to record making. Records were no longer recordings of instruments being played---they had become a collection of previously performed and found sounds.” (Pg. 93)

He comments, “The most damaging example of anti-hip hop vindictiveness came from a most unlikely source. In 1992, the gentle-voiced ‘70s balladeer Gilbert O’Sullivan sued … Biz Markie for unauthorized use of his 1972 hit ‘Alone Again (Naturally).’ But instead of sticking up Biz and his record companies for a substantial royalty on all records sold—which he was certainly entitled to---O’Sullivan successfully forced Warner Bros. to recall all pressings and stop selling the album until the song was removed. The resulting loss of visibility severely damaged Biz Markie’s career as a rapper and sent a chill through the industry that is still felt.” (Pg. 95)

He acknowledges, “Hip hop has produced no Bessie Smith, no Billie Holiday, no Aretha Franklin. You would make an argument that Queen Latifah has, as a symbol of female empowerment, filled Aretha’s shoes for rap, though for artistic impact Latifah doesn’t compare to the Queen of Soul. Similarly, you can make a case that Salt-N-Pepa’s four platinum albums and clean-cut sexuality mirror the Supremes pop appeal, though neither of the two MCs on their beautiful Spinderella is ever gonna be Diana Ross.” (Pg. 184)

He concludes, “One day in the year 2005, 2010, 2020, all this fun and fury will seem as antiquated as spats and big bands do to us. The next generation may reject hip hop for the next sweeping cultural trend. And, by the logic of pop culture, they are actually supposed to. But, whether they like it or not, they’ll know there once was a hip hop America. Word.” (Pg. 212)

This is an excellent historical commentary on many aspects of hip hop music, that will be of keen interest not only to fans, but to those wanting an ‘overview’ of the subject.

[Kinga · Rating 3 out of 5]

I always have a hard time trying to review non-fiction books and this could easily turn into my personal musings about hip hop and what it meant to be growing up in post communist Poland listening to hip hop. Being born in 1982 in still communist Poland I missed out on the beginnings of movement but joined happily as soon as I could.
Nelson George’s book fills the gaps for me – whoever heard of DJ Hollywood? – about how it all started.

The book sounds more like a sentimental journey through the history of hip hop rather than anything encyclopaedic. And, of course, George defends the genre as much as he can. He does it quite logically and sometimes I had to rethink my position (for example I – gasp! – can see some merit in gangsta rap now). Thankfully he is not trying to justify the misogyny of so many hip hop records because I would have to lower my rating considerably. As it is, it is a decent 3 – 3.5 star effort. It feels more like an introduction, as it is only about 200 pages long but gives a good idea about what hip hop was in the 80’s and the first half of the 90s.

It also investigates all the connections hip hop has made whether in fashion, film making or general visual arts. At the time when the book was written hip hop had already started selling out. Now it is just pimping itself to the limits. It has sadly turned from a movement into a product but on the positive note, it hasn’t died.

George closes the book with this sentence:
“One day in the year 2005, 2010, 2020, all this fun and fury will seem as antiquated as spats and big bands do to us “. Well, it is 2010 and it doesn't seem so. Hip hop is very much alive and kicking. And there is still quality to it but as it is often the case, you have to dig deeper underground now.

[Melzanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

i believe that hip hop is a brilliant, post-dada, inner-city collage of the available; meaning: these doods made a sound out of scratched records and vocal beatboxes. my biggest pet peeve is when people complain that hip hop artists didn't/don't (for the most part--many do) play their own instruments. fuck instruments! these visionaries too what they had: their sense of rhythm, their voice, their beat record collects, and formed a whole new genre that would change music. while the current state of hiphop can be characterized in disarray, hiphop's founding fathers in the late 70s knew how to hold it down. i respect that. i respect the genre, the genre of the marginalized.

[Nataya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hip Hop America was an amazing book, it had insight from the past and how it affects us today and in the future. Besides the cover "HIp Hop America" its not all about the dance Hip Hop. The book circles around african american history, and then what later became Hip Hop. Nelson George tells stories from the past and how it affected african american culture. As Nelson George puts it "Hip Hop is a spawn of many things, but most profoundly,it is a product of a schizophrenic, post-civil rights movement America."

[The Book Ninja · Rating 5 out of 5]

When George wrote this book about the birth of Hiphop, the culture was in its late adolescence. It’s as “real” a history you can read as George was there and involved as it happened. This makes it a really engaging authentic and enjoyable read. It wasn’t until after this book that hiphop, or more specifically rap (it’s left breaking, deejaying and graffiti behind, somewhat) became a world-wide behemoth. There’s no sign of Eminem, Jay-Z, Kanye or, in my opinion, raps greatest producer J Dilla. Also, George’s friend and hero, Russel Simmons has since been accused of all kinds of nastiness. I’d love to read a Part 2.

[Philip Dane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Although it's been a healthy spread of years since I dove into the contents of this hip hop literature it's service and influence were grand. Credit goes to this particular body of text for delivering me toward a path of hip hop literature and hip hop related scholarship.

[Shà · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was dope

[Mk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped me frame HipHop, for the first time, as a cultural and political force in the US.

[matt. singer. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Writer Nelson George was born in rap’s cradle of civilization — Brooklyn, N.Y. — and came of age as a journalist just as the first emcees, DJs, breakers and graffiti artists began crawling out of the primordial soup — in this case, the parks, rec centers and block parties across the five boroughs circa the mid-1970s. He’s been charting their evolution ever since. "Hip Hop America" is not a simple linear history, though. It’s an examination of hip-hop as an ongoing sociological phenomenon. When the culture left urban street corners and grew into the biggest pop movement of the late 20th century, it impacted everything, from the way shoes and malt liquor are marketed to the drug trade, basketball and, of course, racial politics. George manages to cover the scope of hip-hop’s influence with scholarly intelligence, a conversational tone and refreshing objectivity. In one of the book’s most intriguing chapters, the author uses a dispute he once had with the Fat Boys’ Caucasian manager as a springboard to discussing the contrary notion that visionary white record executives did more to nurture rap in its infancy than the black music establishment, who were just as confused by it as suburban parents were when they started hearing it come from their kids’ bedrooms. It’s a fair, balanced and fascinating perspective from someone who knows his shizzle.

[Paras Ghelani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very readable history and cultural study

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yeah, I'm almost 20 years late, but most of the hip hop I've truly loved came out before the 1998 release date of this overview of the genre. George is one year older than I am, and being from New York, he was able to get in on the ground floor of this cultural excitement. George covers hip hop history, but he also focuses on different elements - the dj, the graffiti, the breakdancing, the fashions, the videos, the misogyny, the politics, the pride, the social factors, etc. It's interesting to read all this in one relatively short book - nothing is in depth, but it's all solidly discussed. The book came out just a couple years before the record industry tanked, thus making parts of it seem a relic of the dim and distant past. It also reminded me of a lot of records I really liked back in the day.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adding referenced tracks to a playlist as I read made this history go by slowly, but damn my playlist is rad. Oh, and finally I have context for how rap went from inception to the year ~2000. Chapters on fashion and basketball slowed and distracted, but my boy legitimately dedicated his entire basketball chapter to the Philadelphia 76ers (+1 stars). Overall four stars. Do wish I would've realized this was published in 1998, but in some ways it makes the author's perspective even more interesting.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though originally published as a survey of modern hip hop back in 1998, this book now serves as an insightful history of the first two decades of the genre. Touching on everything from the business, fashion, and global impact to the music itself, George offers a first-person account of how hip hop has become the de facto pop culture. Because that's what it is.

[Osvaldo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nelson George's Hip Hop America doesn't seem aptly titled. I think it needs some other title to go along with a proper sub-title along the lines of "Collected Reflections of a Hip-Hop Journalist" (or something like that).

It is not as if George is not more than qualified to provide a look back on hip-hop, it is just that with a title like Hip Hop America, I was hoping for something a little deeper - something that examined hip-hop's role in American culture, its echoes and contradictions. ..

I might be being unfair here. Ultimately, George is a journalist, not an academic. . . so perhaps he couldn't (or wouldn't) be writing what I want, but in the end the book (it was published in '98) feels a little dated and the reflections seem relayed and organized in such a way to demonstrate that George was there, all along. . . he interviewed all these people. He had thoughts and reactions and reviews to all the trends in hip-hop from the late 70s to the turn of the century. . . and yeah, that's great, but so what?

While some might prefer the personal tone to the book, I prefer something like Tricia Rose's Black Noise (or her newer books Hip Hop Wars), as it gives a real critical examination and thus is something more than reminiscing.

[Dave · Rating 4 out of 5]

I originally read this book for a class and it has become one of my favorite non-fiction books. George follows the evolution of hip hop in america from the street corners of brooklyn and the bronx, through the founding of death row records. All the strife and competition is put in context with the greater African American culture revolution in America. If you have any interest in hip hop, or culture in america this book is a must read.

[Gary Love · Rating 3 out of 5]

A solid overview, but it dates itself pretty quickly. The dismissiveness of female rappers, UK rap (especially trip hop, and completely missing Dre's expanded role in the music scene that was to come.

Luckily Hip Hop continued to evolve, since the NY centric viewpoint in the culture and in this book are barriers to it's evolution.

[Bill Shannon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hip hop for beginners. Half polemic, half fanboy hagiography.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A seemingly extensive and well-informed history of hip-hop as both a genre and a cultural movement. Draws heavily on information learned from prior interviews and from George's own anecdotes.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

More academic than enlightening. Serious hip hop person might find it more enjoyable.

I received this book free from Goodreads First Reads.

[Paxton Holley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Jeeg gave this to me for Xmas. Yikes, it was sort of a tough read. Didn't focus enough on the history of rap. Talked a lot about the influences of rap on popular culture.

[Andrew Guthrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only give this book 3 stars simply because it didn't quite do it for me (though I am most willing to admit George's significant contributions to the genre), nevertheless, it filled in some important gaps in my knowledge about certain periods in the game that I really did not pay attention to . . . like the Puff Daddy phase, the Teddy Riley phase, and where the term New Jack Swing came from. I didn't pay attention (at that time) because that music didn't really move me, being an old head, and coming up in the Sugar Hill/Eric B and Rakim era and then dropping the ball. BUT I was the one who bought and spun Kool More Dee's "How You Like Me Now", which the book rightfully connects to the trends of New Jack Swing.

All that speaks to Hip Hop's willingness to change with the times while still coming under the same heading; how it moved from DJ culture (sampling and such) to full blown studio productions that weren't wholly the "rap" that we started out with (all the while improving the lyrical "flow"). It's just that too often I thought the chapters consisted of a collection names and labels, and their accomplishments, reading like a business reporter rather than a passionate theoretician (though of course his love for the music does come through). The chapter on sampling (and its controversies) was particularly lame, given the richness of material still being produced on that subject, along with the curiously post-modern quality of that endeavour (George's chapter on sampling primarily focuses on the percussionist and song writer Mtume's disparagement of the practice). On the other hand the chapter "The Permanent Business" cleverly breaks down the entrenched corporate practices of the music industry.

When George places himself at the center of the sweaty action, in the first venues and scrappy youth clubs that featured Hip Hop, or when he encounters Kool Herc, Afika Bambatta and Grandmaster Flash all on the same radio show (along with clearly delineating their individual idiosyncrasies) THEN I can get excited . . . while conversely, I unashamedly skipped through the chapter on basketball (please don't conflate your favorite, but distinct, entertainments into one catch-all particularly when the title reads: Hip Hop . . . and this reader has zero interest in professional sports).

Credit is due with George's critiques of Gangster Rap and Hip Hop misogyny (in particular the 2 Live Crew controversies) which puts him at odds with some of his contemporaries, which also speaks to his honest confession that he can both love and hate the genre that has provided him with a well-deserved professional life. It should also be noted (in closing) that things are moving fast, unexpectedly fast (while Hip Hop amasses the dollars) in a genre that was at first written off by the music establishment. The book first came out in 1998 and this edition includes new information/chapters added . . . but given how fast Hip Hop is expanding, with its range extending far beyond New York City, any book that tries to summarize the entire equation is going to fall behind.

[云 · Rating 5 out of 5]

我覺得這本並不能讓人更懂得會聽（顯然），也不能更讓我實際認識他所敘述的人物或風格──事實上是網飛上的紀錄片才讓那些較陌生的事物在我心中有了生動形象──但這本提供的是一個架構？它提供了背景認識，是那些聽訪談的時候聽到人說承繼嘻哈傳統時所承繼的種種，也是後來者在歌詞中reference的時候所提及或參考到的種種。即使它並不詳盡（詳盡全面是不可能的，雖然看的時候難免還是會被各種資訊淹沒覺得名字好多），但條理一明晰後再去看延伸出的便會覺得易理解不少。
因為書的主題是聚焦在嘻哈文化上，所以帶到了許多不同面向上的東西，並不侷限於音樂（一如簡介上寫了好多的那些），但除了此文化的發展本身，其他面向大都淺嘗輒止。印象深刻的段落包含作者寫毒品與黑街饒舌，寫驕傲自大與主體性（作為一種自我增權的、對於展現的渴求，所展現的個人風格中亦蘊含集體脈絡），寫對於取樣的辯論，寫MV帶來的影響，寫東西岸，寫舊派與新派，寫流行與資本文化（嘻哈是極端彈性的一種傳達工具，無論是政治抑或廣告，各種元素都能被轉化成商品銷售），寫這個文化中的厭女與侷限（一如本書寫道饒舌音樂並沒有如藍調或靈魂樂一般出現能深刻影響整體藝術發展的女性歌者，真好奇現在如何？同一章還提到了女性在黑人文學史中所開創的新頁，提到了那些針對黑人社群而發的「女性中心觀點」常使她們的種族忠誠度受到類似於「何必家醜外揚」的批評。多身分相交的處境呀），後面寫到了塗鴉與DJ與宣洩不滿的饒舌在美國之外的其他地方發展出了不同的樣貌，最後則寫說他不知道這個文化的未來如何，但至少它現在蓬勃且曾經存在過於是以本書作為一個紀錄，是一個明亮的收尾。
值得提及的是作者的熱情與欲辯護之心與時而流露出的憤怒或難過等情緒十分鮮明，但整體又走一個多面剖析的風格，讀起來時覺得很有趣。總而言之還是蠻精彩的。
以及完全能理解這本書的難以翻譯，能看到這本真開心XD

[schaft · Rating 2 out of 5]

George writes about HIS history of hip hop in America and tries to make it everyone's history of hip hop. He mentions elitism but seems unaware of how often his disparaging comments about artists come off as incredibly elitist. The most entertaining section was discussing Luther Campbell and 2 Live Crew, during which George eats crow for trying to belittle and discredit Campbell. Overall, it's a jumpy and cherry picked take on the first 20 years of hip hop. I'd be scared to see what he thinks of what has happened since he wrote this book.

[Edward Champion · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't quite as strong as George's previous volume, THE DEATH OF RHYTHM AND BLUES, but it's still a very good overview of how hip hop deserves far more credit for shaping American culture -- from dancing to fashion to music. There's probably a little too much first person in here than the book needs (do we really need to know about George having breakfast with Russell Simmons?), but it's still a solid volume.

[Ron Maskell · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's an ok book once you get past all the errors in it. Nelson George mentions in the afterword that he wrote this book using his memory. Needless to say his memory wasn't that good. Wrong song title, wrong lyric and wrong release year and that's just for one paragraph. Not to mention incorrect anecdotes and even the wrong spelling of an artist's name.

[Jonny Brick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worthwhile document of hiphop's effect on American life - style, language, film - at the turn of the millennium. Sean Combs and Russell Simmons may well have their reputations diminished in the current era, but they were the true kings of the genre in 1998. I also learned the term 'permanent business' from this book.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great short introduction to the topic by way of the author's effortlessly charming and informative prose. The action stops in the late nineties so the likes of Missy Elliott and Eminem are mentioned only in a bolted-on concluding chapter (excellent) that also provides Mike Skinner with a name check. Hence, the dominance of Jay-Z, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar and company is not covered and nor is Beyoncé - although that begs the question as to where Hip Hop stops and modern R & B starts. George does devote a few pages to the so-called New Jack Swing that begat the latter so the dividing line is paper thin.

All this said, this is not just a musical journey - George is superb on the whole culture of hip hop - the clothes, the politics, the attitudes, the killings and the rivalries, especially between New York and California. He does not apologise for the genre's excesses but at the same time does a very skilful job at showing how black people have a right to be angry. That there are artists that have sold millions of records whom I have never heard of won't surprise you but it also led to me to dust down my meagre collection of hip hop albums for another, hugely enjoyable listen.

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Did not like the project for this book.

[Savannah Henderson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love the “i really think that the kids are onto something with this hippity-hoppity stuff” tone of this book