The Hip Hop Years: A History of Rap

by Alex Ogg, David Upshal

An exploration into the world of rap and hip hop is captured through firsthand accounts of those who played a pivotal role in its history.

Genres: Music, Hip Hop, History

221 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1999

Reviews

[Eamonn · Rating 2 out of 5]

I gave up on this after about 70 pages. Unfortunately, it's not a history of Hip Hop, it's a recap of the major headlines. At only 220 pages long, I probably should have realised this. A comprehensive history would probably be of the order of 700+ pages. Instead, this is a quick read probably most useful for those wishing to refresh their memories but it's not what I was hoping for. I know very little about Hip Hop. I was a teenager in the late 70s, a very rich period for pop music (1977-82 especially), and I remember many of the early Hip Hop singles well. I expected this book to put those into some form of context or structure and build from there into the '80s and '90s, which it did in it's own way, but it felt like it was reminding me of thing it assumed I already knew about. Like a recap.
I'd rather not rate this book as I didn't finish it but it does irritate me that the title is misleading.

[Nasser · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is about the history of Rap. I decided to read this book because one of the types of music i like to listen to is Rap. SO when i was reading this book i was really surprised because back in the day Rap had a real deep emotional meaning to them which the rap today in 2010 also has deep meanings but not as much. I also noticed how much Rap has accomplished from back in the day to now. I thought this book was really good because i learned a lot about a type of music i like. I recommend this book to anyone who likes rap or music and history of music.

[Now This Sound Is Brave · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a primer than a history, The Hip Hop Years is good for putting things in context for the hip hop novice, but it probably wouldn't hold much interest for aficionados. The non-linear chronology of the book and the sometimes judgmental tone of the writing were irritating, but it was, all in all, a compelling read.

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a primer than a history, The Hip Hop Years is good for putting things in context for the hip hop novice, but it probably wouldn't hold much interest for aficionados. The non-linear chronology of the book and the sometimes judgmental tone of the writing were irritating, but it was, all in all, a compelling read.

[hh · Rating 3 out of 5]

overview with some significant gaps. but decent enough.