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Lädt ... Original Gangstas: The Untold Story of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Tupac Shakur, and the Birth of West Coast Rap (Original 2016; 2016. Auflage)von Ben Westhoff (Autor)
Werk-InformationenOriginal Gangstas: The Untold Story of Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Ice Cube, Tupac Shakur, and the Birth of West Coast Rap von Ben Westhoff (2016)
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Melde dich bei LibraryThing an um herauszufinden, ob du dieses Buch mögen würdest. Keine aktuelle Diskussion zu diesem Buch. Words cannot express the badassery of this book. It's complex, a little overwhelming with the depth of rap history and all those who helped contribute to the gangsta rap movement, but holy hell this was an enlightening book. I've never been a huge hardcore rap fan (although I have my party staples), but this book made me take a better listen and actually appreciate everything that's going on. Author Ben Westhoff does an amazing job talking about west coast rap and the birth of gangsta rap by telling the stories, of NWA, Dre, Ice Cube, Eazy E, Tupac, Snoop Dogg, and the respective record companies: Death Row, Ruthless, and Aftermath. The research taken into this book is exhaustive and the author does an amazing job of piecing together these rapper's stories, their environment, and the culture that helped birth rap and give a voice to the disenfranchised. A wonderful, gritty, well written and engrossing read that even non-rap listeners will appreciate. West coast rap lovers, and those who loved the movie, Straight Out of Compton will EAT THIS UP! Zeige 2 von 2 keine Rezensionen | Rezension hinzufügen
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"Raw, authoritative, and unflinching ... An elaborately detailed, darkly surprising, definitive history of the LA gangsta rap era."---Kirkus, starred review A monumental, revealing narrative history about the legendary group of artists at the forefront of West Coast hip-hop: Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg, and Tupac Shakur. Amid rising gang violence, the crack epidemic, and police brutality, a group of unlikely voices cut through the chaos of late 1980s Los Angeles: N.W.A. Led by a drug dealer, a glammed-up producer, and a high school kid, N.W.A gave voice to disenfranchised African Americans across the country. And they quickly redefined pop culture across the world. Their names remain as popular as ever--Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube. Dre soon joined forces with Suge Knight to create the combustible Death Row Records, which in turn transformed Snoop Dogg and Tupac Shakur into superstars. Ben Westhoff explores how this group of artists shifted the balance of hip-hop from New York to Los Angeles. He shows how N.W.A.'s shocking success lead to rivalries between members, record labels, and eventually a war between East Coast and West Coast factions. In the process, hip-hop burst into mainstream America at a time of immense social change, and became the most dominant musical movement of the last thirty years. At gangsta rap's peak, two of its biggest names--Tupac and Biggie Smalls--were murdered, leaving the surviving artists to forge peace before the genre annihilated itself. Featuring extensive investigative reporting, interviews with the principal players, and dozens of never-before-told stories, Original Gangstas is a groundbreaking addition to the history of popular music. Keine Bibliotheksbeschreibungen gefunden. |
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Google Books — Lädt ... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)782.421649The arts Music Vocal music Secular Forms of vocal music Secular songs General principles and musical forms Song genres Western popular songs RapKlassifikation der Library of Congress [LCC] (USA)BewertungDurchschnitt:
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Westhoff mostly focuses on N.W.A. personnel (Dre, Ice Cube, Eazy-E, DOC), along with Snoop, Tupac, and some East Coast figures (Biggie, Puff Daddy) who moved between the two coasts, and he provides lots of context behind the albums, so it vastly improves on entertainment products like 2015's Straight Outta Compton by connecting more dots and providing more answers (though the real best exploration of hip hop remains Fear of a Black Hat). As charming as it might be for some to see bits of trivia like the "Bye, Felicia!" scene, most of the real story of every musical group is in the business negotiations with lawyers, labels, distributors, and every other necessary parasite. Artists make music for fun and personal fulfillment, but you can't make more than an album or two without getting paid, and so the tension between the art and the commerce sides of the music industry is overlaid on all of the other well-known drugs/crime/violence issues that plagued the West Coast scene. This means the book overlaps more with 2017's The Defiant Ones, which focuses on Dre and producer Jimmy Iovine. Iovine in particular was crucial to the band's success, as shown for example by his marketing strategy for The Chronic's first single "Nuthin' But a 'G' Thang":
"We can't get it played on the radio," Jimmy Iovine said the radio guys told him.
"It's 'Satisfaction,'" he retorted.
"Radio doesn't think so. They think it's a bunch of black guys cursing who want to kill everybody."
Iovine decided to create a minute-long commercial, consisting of nothing but the song. "Don't say who it is, and buy it on fifty stations, drive time. I want the program directors to hear it in their cars."
There are many interesting counterfactuals that Westhoff proposes:
"Daily Beast writer Rich Goldstein pointed out that 1988 was a huge year for record sales, led by George Michael's Faith and the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, each of which sold over ten million copies. In those pre-internet days, there weren't very many places to hear about new music, and not many places to buy it. All of N.W.A's publicity was great, but that didn't matter if you couldn't actually consume their songs. "Had Straight Outta Compton been played on MTV, listened to on the radio, and been available for purchase in big-box retailers like Walmart, there is a good chance it would have eclipsed the Dirty Dancing soundtrack," Goldstein theorized."
And the saddest parts of the book are of course the discussions of the tragically brief and violent lives of many incredibly talented people, most notably Biggie and Tupac. All of the surviving members of N.W.A. lament how short their collaborative period was before it fell apart, and one can only imagine the works that they and the rest could have created if they hadn't hated each other:
"Tupac claimed to have directly influenced Biggie's style. "I used to tell the nigga, 'If you want to make your money you have to rap for the bitches. Do not rap for the niggas,'" he said. "The bitches will buy your records, and the niggas want what the bitches want." As proof that Biggie had heeded his advice, Tupac cited the difference between the aggressive "Party and Bullshit" and softer Ready to Die hits tracks "Big Poppa," which appealed more to the ladies. Soon as he buy that wine, I just creep up from behind / And ask what your interests are, who you be with?"
But as unfortunately truncated as many of their careers were, their surviving works are legendary, and books like Westhoff's are a testament to how brightly stars can shine in such a brief period. ( )