Biographies About
Hip Hop, R&B & Soul Icons

Follow the personal journeys and career breakthroughs of notorious rappers,
blues masters, and soul divas who shook up the music industry.

Modeled after Maria Shriver's Just Who Will You Be, Queen Latifah's goal with Put On Your Crown is to help young women build a strong sense of self-esteem....

A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself - by band members ADROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Wes Anderson, Luc Sante, and more....

The explosive, never-before-told story behind the historic rise of the Wu-Tang Clan, as told by one of its founding members, Lamont "U-God" Hawkins....

In addition to the balancing act of juggling an all-consuming music career and her family, TLC's Tionne has struggled with sickle-cell disease since she was a young girl....

The seminal rap group A Tribe Called Quest brought jazz into the genre, resurrecting timeless rhythms to create masterpieces. This narrative follows Tribe from their early days as part of the Afrocentric rap collective known as the Native Tongues....

An inspirational audiobook by self-made musical superstar Russ, reminding you that it starts with you, to believe in yourself, and to get out of your own way....

If you live for people's acceptance, you'll die from their rejection. Two-time Grammy-winning rap artist, Lecrae, learned this lesson through more than his share of adversity....

Courageous, insightful, brave, and characteristically authentic, Let Love Have the Last Word shares Common’s own unique and personal stories of the people and experiences that have led to a greater understanding of love and all it has to offer....

For the first time, Gucci Mane tells his story in his own words. It is the captivating life of an artist who forged an unlikely path to stardom and personal rebirth....

In The 50th Law, hip hop and pop culture icon 50 Cent offers a "bible" for success in life and work....

From Pieces to Weight: Once Upon a Time in Southside Queens is a violent and introspective memoir that reveals not only 50 Cent's story but the story of a generation....

Jay-Z: Made in America is the fruit of Michael Eric Dyson’s decade of teaching the work of one of the greatest poets this nation has produced, as gifted a wordsmith as Walt Whitman, Robert Frost and Rita Dove....

A comprehensive, chronological survey of rap and hip-hop from 1973 to the present by Chuck D., arguably the most influential rapper in the world....

Before Talib Kweli became a world-renowned hip hop artist, he was a Brooklyn kid who liked to cut class, spit rhymes, and wander the streets of Greenwich Village with a motley crew of artists, rappers, and DJs who found hip hop more inspiring than their textbooks....

With The One, Smith profiles one of the 20th century’s most innovative musical icons, the Godfather of Soul himself, James Brown....

Anthony Bozza creates a thoughtful portrait of one of the most successful artists of our time....

The definitive memoir from Ice-T, the acclaimed rapper and actor known for telling it like it is....

A captivating and fast-paced account of the rise of Ruffhouse Records’ founder Chris Schwartz, the coming of age of hip-hop, and the trials and tribulations of some of its greatest artists....

Tracing the careers of hip-hop's three most dynamic stars, this deeply reported history brilliantly examines the entrepreneurial genius of the first musician tycoons: Diddy, Dr. Dre, and Jay-Z....