Hip Hop Raised Me

by D.J. Semtex

The definitive volume capturing the essence, experience and energy that is hip hop and its massive and enduring impact over the last forty years Hip Hop Raised Me is the definitive volume on the essence, experience, and energy that is hip hop, and its massive and enduring impact over the last forty years. It’s packed with contact sheets, outtakes, and glory shots of artists, collectives, and fans from iconic photographers including Martha Cooper, Henry Chalfant, Eddie Otchere, Normski, Janette Beckman, Chi Modu, Nabil Elderkin, and Mark Humphrey, as well as photographs of hip-hop ephemera and vinyl courtesy of specialist collectors.

With the help of his definitive catalogue of interviews with hip-hop artists from the 1990s to today, conducted at key moments in their careers and including Jay-Z, Kanye West, Eminem, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Drake, Nicki Minaj, J Cole, Kendrick Lamar, Nas, and the Wu-Tang Clan, DJ Semtex examines the crucial role of hip hop in society. He reflects on the huge influence it has had on his own life and the lives of many others, providing inspiration to generation after generation of young people. Taking a thematic approach, Semtex traces the characteristics and influence of hip hop from its origins in the early 1970s with DJ Kool Herc’s block parties in the South Bronx, through its breakthrough to the mainstream and advent of gangsta rap in the late 1980s, with artists such as Run DMC, Public Enemy, and Ice T, to the impact of contemporary artists and the global industry that is hip hop today.  1000+ illustrations, 800 in color

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, History, Hip Hop, Pop Culture

448 pages, Hardcover

Published November 15, 2016

Reviews

[Waleed · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well researched and lavishly illustrated. As well as a comprehensive history (from a British perspective) Semtex provides interesting thoughts on the future of hip-hop.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was massive. It's kind of styled like a yearbook but with 400+ pages of pictures and commentary. It was really cool to see/read the story behind the album covers/photo shoots of different rappers/groups.

[J. Andrew · Rating 3 out of 5]

The only reason this book has 3 stars is because it is a beautifully put together book. However, the writing is bad. It goes out of its way to not talk about race, and race and racism are in part the foundation of Hip Hop. Also, the book never defines terms and is very biased. Two people who should have been mentioned, not because their lasting legacies demand it, but because their small contribution to Hip Hop is important, there is no reference to MC Hammer who was the first commercially successful rapper who dominated the charts for a brief time and MF Doom who's flow would influence Biggie and Eminem.

Also, the title and the introduction of the book, DJ Semtex has a compelling story, yet beyond the first few pages, we never saw how Hip Hop raised him. It's supposed to be a history of the genre but without any heart.

Just look at the pictures and read the flow charts. The rest of this book is garbage.

[Kevin Krein · Rating 1 out of 5]

i bought this on a whim when i still worked at a bookstore. we got it in right before the holidays, and there it sat, on the table of new releases. people looked at it; no one was going to spend $65 on it. we were about to send it back to the distributor for credit and i decided, sure, i'll take it.

this is, without a doubt, one of the worst and most frustrating books i've ever read in my entire life. part coffee table book, part clunky and rudimentary history lesson, it is simply maddening to try and make sense of the rambling, unstructured way the book is set up. yes, the photographs are neat and interesting to look at, and paging through those makes it a fast read; however, DJ Semtex is not a writer. he's not even really a story teller. throughout the book, he tries to parse as much information about hip hop as he can, but it's barely organized. it hobbles back and forth between quotes and anecdotes and history and for someone who likes hip hop and has followed the culture for a number of years, there's no new information provided here.

also, for what it's worth, Semtex gets a lot of information wrong. dates are off, and the most glaring mistake i found was the roots drummer, questlove, being credited as 'guestlove.' i guess nobody proofed this thing?

[Antero Magalhães · Rating 5 out of 5]

With Hip-Hop's inception still being relatively fresh in the world, no older than the 1980's, this book is a testament to the scope with which one can research and archive the genre's large, chaotic history, filled with subgenres and stylistic approaches that survived for different times before passing onto the next group of young artists, now many having had their names etched into history, or saved in the vinyl sleeves of yesterday.
Photographs, from the cutting room floor to finalized ones; interviews, testimonials to the history of Hip-Hop; how it progressed, who worked with whom, and who is active today still working in the industry (2022). DJ Semtex explores hip-hop and rap music from the days of Run DMC, Eric B & Rakim and Public Enemy, to newer acts like Kanye, Pharrell and Tyler the Creator.
Some can consider it a "coffee table book" due to it being a Taschen published book, but it offers you a lot on what to look for, and to look at, when researching hip-hop music.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, I raised my kids on Hip-Hop and I loved this book. The photographs of the people and the covers are amazing. The history from a UK DJ Semtex perspective made the viewpoint global instead of east coast / west coast as us Americans can't help but feel.
Loved the historical aspects of hip hop influence on Obama's campaign, his chapter on the N-word and that he actually went into detail racism.
It's a beautiful coffee table book but is a great historical read. I made a Spotify Playlist while reading to remind me of the stuff I forgot about. Brilliant book.

[Andrew Mulrooney · Rating 3 out of 5]

An in-depth look into the history of hip hop culture along with rare photographs of iconic artists.

[Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid history of hip hop that covers a lot from the 80s to today.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

This could well be the Hip Hop bible.I grew up listening to 80's Hip Hop (The Golden Era) this is a great book and an essential read for all Hip Hop heads' and Hip Hop Definitely raised me ✌️

[Simon Sweetman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, mostly images, but beautiful design, leading to a beautiful reminder of so much of the magical music that has held me in its spell across 35 years now.

[Stefan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an amazing document on hiphop music and culture. It documents the history of the music and culture, including stories on or from many of the important key figures in the history of hiphop. The artwork is amazing! I learned a lot from this book. Very much recommended.

[Trevor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is HUGE. I should admit that I did not read every word in it, because I needed to return it to the library. But I still recommend it.

[Bergþór Másson · Rating 3 out of 5]

photographs 5/5
writing 3/5
content 3/5