Zack O'Malley Greenburg

What most impressed me about this book is that it gave a nice overview of the history of hip-hop in general, touching on everyone from Fab Five Freddie and Run DMC to NWA. The main focus is on the careers of Diddy, Dr. Dre, and Jay-Z, deigning them the title of the Three Kings of hip-hop for their business acumen. Truly, we learn about all of their varied ventures, successes and failures, from Ciroc Vodka to clothing, Beats to Tidal, Live Nation, Apple, and more.

It's an interesting look at how hip-hop has shaped our culture and how artists create a brand for themselves. Personally, I'm much more intrigued by Jay and Dre than Diddy. Nothing personal, just find them more compelling and more invested in the music. Just about everyone in hip=hop makes a cameo on the book, even if only in passing. It's a good analysis, and - what I loved most about the book - is that Greenburg points out that, thanks to these artists, young African-American kids now could aspire to be not only musicians, rappers, and artists, as these men did, but thanks to them, they could now aspire to be entrepreneurs. They could become millionaires. While money isn't everything (by any means), I love the sense of empowerment these artists give kids in environments where hope is hard to come by.

Definitely worth a read by anyone who appreciates hip-hop or wants to learn how artists turn their talents into massive movements.… (meer)