The Rap Year Book - by Shea Serrano (Paperback)

About the Book

This book "takes readers from 1979, widely regarded as the moment rap became recognized as part of the cultural and musical landscape, and comes right up to the present, with Shea Serrano ... discussing, debating, and deconstructing the most important rap song year by year. Serrano also examines the most important moments that surround the history and culture of rap music--from artists' backgrounds to issues of race, the rise of hip-hop, and the struggles among its major players--both personal and professional"--Amazon.com.

Book Synopsis

New York Times Bestseller!
Washington Post Bestseller!
Pitchfork Book Club selection!

From Sugarhill Gang to NWA to Biggie to Kanye, The Rap Year Book takes readers on a journey that begins in 1979, widely regarded as the moment rap became recognized as part of the cultural and musical landscape, and works its way right up to the present.

Shea Serrano deftly pays homage to the most important song of each year. Serrano also examines the most important moments that surround the history and culture of rap music--from artists' backgrounds to issues of race, the rise of hip-hop, and the struggles among its major players--both personal and professional. Covering East Coast and West Coast, famous rapper feuds, chart toppers, and showstoppers.

It's like the gold tank from Master P's "Make 'Em Say Uhh!" video, except it's a book. It's like Kanye's verse on "Put On," except it's a book. It's like the face Biggie made when on the boat with Puff in "Hypnotize," except it's a book. Songs include:

• 1979: Rapper's Delight
• 1982: The Message
• 1988: Straight Outta Compton
• 2004: Still Trippin'
• 2007 International Players Anthem
• 2010: Monster
• One for every year!

The Rap Year Book is an in-depth look at the most influential genre of music in our generation. Complete with infographics, lyric maps, hilarious and informative footnotes, portraits of the artists, and short essays by other prominent music writers, The Rap Year Book is both a narrative and illustrated guide to the most iconic and influential rap songs ever created.

Review Quotes

"The Rap Year Book above all intends to capture hip-hop's spirit of banter and love of debating who's best. This isn't a book that's a chore to read; it's one that's a pleasure to argue over. Buy it."-- "Vice"

"The Rap Year Book just might be hip-hop's first official encyclopedia."-- "Global Grind"

"[A] bold, humorous, and novel treatment of hip-hop's history that makes The Rap Year Book a pleasure to read and absorb, and the kind of ingenuity that doesn't usually have a place in music histories or rigidly structured list-based pop culture reference books but that Serrano refreshingly builds his work around."-- "PopMatters"

"A combination of deadpan humor and incisive smarts."-- "Book Riot"

"Ambitious, beautifully illustrated, and a perfect gift."-- "Remezcla"

"An in-depth look at the culture surrounding rap, from famous rapper feuds to influential movies."-- "Complex"

"Deeply informed but willing to get personal and weird, The Rap Year Book deserves to be on the shelf next to Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists, its clear ancestor and possibly the smartest book about hip-hop ever published."-- "BLOUIN ARTINFO"

"Even if you only recognize a few names on the list, the book works for just about everyone with an interest in music, comics, hilarious writing, and a carefully researched musical archaeology dig that uncovers the origins of trends that are still happening today."-- "Marketplace Weekend"

"I love true originals, and there is nobody quite like Shea right now. It's just a fun book. There's no other way to describe it."-- "Bill Simmons, Wall Street Journal"

"It's excellent."-- "Houston Press online"

"It's smart, funny, and highly contentious."-- "BuzzFeed"

"It's the reading equivalent of a Ken Burns documentary, except with more cuss words-- "Esquire"

"Just because you memorized the hook from "Trap Queen" doesn't mean you know jack about rap. Do yourself a favor and pick up this expansive, definitive history of the genre, which breaks down the last 36 years one song at a time."-- "The Verge"

"Just might be one of the most important rap tomes in the history of rap tomes."-- "Noisey"

"Serrano's book is ambitious, historically minded without getting lost in details."-- "Texas Monthly"

"Shea Serrano and illustrator Arturo Torres have become the Stan Lee and Jack Kirby of online rap-and-sports graphic humor . . . The New York Times-bestselling Rap Year Book . . . is as hilarious as it is insightful."-- "WIRED"

"Smart and entertaining and a perfect gift for rap-loving teens."-- "Yahoo! Parenting"

"The reading equivalent of rocking a boom box on your shoulder."-- "GQ"

"What's key to The Rap Year Book's distinctiveness is that it seeks to discuss 'the most important' song of each year, not the most popular or the bestselling. Everything about it is subjective and debatable."-- "The Guardian"

"Required reading for hip-hop fans and hip-hop newbies alike. It's also the funniest thing I've read in years."--Lin-Manuel Miranda, star and creator of the Broadway sensation Hamilton

About the Author

Shea Serrano is an award-winning writer, author, and illustrator. His first book, Bun B's Rap Coloring and Activity Book, was widely praised, receiving accolades from Rolling Stone, GQ, Esquire, the Los Angeles Times, Pitchfork, MTV, and more. Currently, he is a staff writer for Grantland.