Word Is Bond ArchiveFILE NO. 001 · 94 TITLES
Coming July 13, 2027 · One World / Penguin Random HouseWord Is Bond: The Untold Story of Hip-Hop Journalism
The shelf behind the book
The Reading List
94 books by the writers, editors and scholars who chronicled hip-hop in print.
For four decades, writers at The Source, Vibe, XXL, ego trip, Honey, Rap Pages and Murder Dog filed dispatches the American canon has yet to claim. Many went on to write books.
This file gathers them, organized by department, the way a magazine is. Start anywhere.
Interviewedmarks writers interviewed for Word Is Bond. Every purchase goes through The Lit. Bar, the Bronx’s only independent bookstore.
The Foundation10 TITLES
Where the record begins. Early documentation, first-decade testimony, and the lineage that taught us music could carry a people's argument.
- Black Music1968Black MusicAmiri BarakaBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Blues People1963Blues People: Negro Music in White AmericaAmiri BarakaBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip HopYEAR TKHip Hop: The Complete ArchivesSteven HagerInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip Hop1984Hip Hop: The Illustrated History of Break Dancing, Rap Music, and GraffitiSteven HagerInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Bring the Noise1991Bring the Noise: A Guide to Rap Music and Hip-Hop CultureHavelock Nelson & Michael A. GonzalesInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Yes Yes Y'all2002Yes Yes Y'all: The Experience Music Project Oral History of Hip-Hop's First DecadeJim Fricke & Charlie AhearnBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Issue No. 1YEAR TKIssue No. 1Bronx Biannual
- Issue No. 2YEAR TKIssue No. 2Bronx Biannual
- Tougher Than Leather1987Tougher Than Leather: The Rise of Run-DMCBill AdlerInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip2004Hip: The HistoryJohn LelandInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
The Architects35 TITLES
The writers and editors who built hip-hop journalism from the masthead down, and the books they wrote when the magazines could no longer hold everything they had to say.
- Flyboy in the Buttermilk1992Flyboy in the Buttermilk: Essays on Contemporary AmericaGreg TateInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Flyboy 22016Flyboy 2: The Greg Tate ReaderGreg TateInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Everything But the Burden2003Everything But the Burden: What White People Are Taking from Black CultureGreg Tate, ed.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip Hop America1998Hip Hop AmericaNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Buppies, B-Boys, Baps & Bohos1992Buppies, B-Boys, Baps & Bohos: Notes on Post-Soul Black CultureNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- City Kid2009City Kid: A Writer's Memoir of Ghetto Life and Post-Soul SuccessNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Post-Soul Nation2004Post-Soul NationNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- To Funk and Die in LAYEAR TKTo Funk and Die in LANelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Nelson George MixtapeYEAR TKThe Nelson George MixtapeNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Death of Rhythm & Blues1988The Death of Rhythm & BluesNelson GeorgeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- When Chickenheads Come Home to Roost1999When Chickenheads Come Home to RoostJoan MorganInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- She Begat This2018She Begat This: 20 Years of The Miseducation of Lauryn HillJoan MorganInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Shine Bright2022Shine Bright: A Very Personal History of Black Women in PopDanyel SmithInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- More Like Wrestling2003More Like Wrestling: A NovelDanyel SmithInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- BlissYEAR TKBliss: A NovelDanyel SmithInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Step into a World2000Step into a World: A Global Anthology of the New Black LiteratureKevin Powell, ed.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- In the Tradition1992In the Tradition: An Anthology of Young Black WritersKevin Powell & Ras Baraka, eds.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Education of Kevin Powell2015The Education of Kevin PowellKevin PowellBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- And It Don't Stop2004And It Don't Stop: The Best American Hip-Hop Journalism of the Last 25 YearsRaquel Cepeda, ed.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Bird of Paradise2013Bird of Paradise: How I Became LatinaRaquel CepedaInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Decoded2010DecodedJAY-Z, with dream hamptonInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Unbelievable2003Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of The Notorious B.I.G.Cheo Hodari CokerInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Straight from the Source2008Straight from the SourceKim OsorioInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Vibe QYEAR TKThe Vibe Q: Raw and UncutVibe Magazine
- Vibe Hip Hop DivasYEAR TKVibe Hip Hop DivasVibe Magazine
- Tupac ShakurYEAR TKTupac ShakurVibe Magazine
- Gunshots in My Cook-Up2002Gunshots in My Cook-UpSelwyn Seyfu HindsInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The VIPs2008The VIPsScott Poulson-BryantInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hung2005Hung: A Meditation on the Measure of Black Men in AmericaScott Poulson-BryantInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Marathon Don't Stop2020The Marathon Don't Stop: The Life and Times of Nipsey HussleRob KennerInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- ego trip's Book of Rap Lists1999ego trip's Book of Rap ListsSacha Jenkins, Elliott Wilson, Jefferson Mao, Gabriel Alvarez & Brent RollinsInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- ego trip's Big Book of Racism!YEAR TKego trip's Big Book of Racism!Sacha Jenkins, Elliott Wilson, Jefferson Mao, Gabriel Alvarez & Brent RollinsInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- High Notes2018High Notes: Selected Writings of Barry Michael CooperBarry Michael CooperBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- There's a Riot Goin' On2006There's a Riot Goin' On (33⅓)Miles Marshall LewisInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Scars of the Soul Are Why Kids Wear Bandages When They Don't Have Bruises2004Scars of the Soul Are Why Kids Wear Bandages When They Don't Have BruisesMiles Marshall LewisInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
The Mirror12 TITLES
Scholars and critics turning the lens around: who gets to narrate, what gets preserved, and what the record leaves out.
- Playing in the Dark1992Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary ImaginationToni MorrisonBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Black Popular Culture1992Black Popular CultureGina Dent, ed. (a project by Michele Wallace)BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Black Cool2012Black Cool: One Thousand Streams of BlacknessRebecca Walker, ed.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Black EphemeraYEAR TKBlack Ephemera: The Crisis and Challenge of the Musical ArchiveMark Anthony NealInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Soul Babies2002Soul Babies: Black Popular Culture and the Post-Soul AestheticMark Anthony NealInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Songs in the Key of Black Life2003Songs in the Key of Black LifeMark Anthony NealInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The 'Hood Comes First2002The 'Hood Comes First: Race, Space, and Place in Rap and Hip-HopMurray FormanBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Book of Rhymes2009Book of Rhymes: The Poetics of Hip HopAdam BradleyBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Prophets of the Hood2004Prophets of the Hood: Politics and Poetics in Hip HopImani PerryInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Looking for Lorraine2018Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine HansberryImani PerryInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Black Noise1994Black Noise: Rap Music and Black Culture in Contemporary AmericaTricia RoseBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Hip Hop Wars2008The Hip Hop WarsTricia RoseBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
The Next Wave8 TITLES
Voices carrying the work forward, many of them women writing the history they lived inside.
- The Motherlode2021The Motherlode: 100+ Women Who Made Hip-HopClover HopeInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- First Things First2024First Things First: Hip-Hop Ladies Who Changed the GameNadirah SimmonsBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- God Save the Queens2019God Save the Queens: The Essential History of Women in Hip-HopKathy IandoliInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Baby Girl2021Baby Girl: Better Known as AaliyahKathy IandoliInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- It Was All a Dream2022It Was All a Dream: Biggie and the World That Made HimJustin TinsleyBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Bevelations2021Bevelations: Lessons from a Mutha, Auntie, BestieBevy SmithInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- My Voice2016My Voice: A MemoirAngie MartinezBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Contact High2018Contact High: A Visual History of Hip-HopVikki TobakInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
The Practice22 TITLES
Craft, criticism, and the business beneath the art. Models for writing about music with rigor and range.
- Can't Stop Won't Stop2005Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop GenerationJeff ChangInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Who We Be2014Who We Be: The Colorization of AmericaJeff ChangInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Total Chaos2006Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip-HopJeff Chang, ed.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Never Drank the Kool-Aid2006Never Drank the Kool-Aid: EssaysTouréInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- I Would Die 4 U2013I Would Die 4 U: Why Prince Became an IconTouréInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Big Payback2010The Big Payback: The History of the Business of Hip-HopDan CharnasInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Dilla Time2022Dilla TimeDan CharnasInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Check the Technique2007Check the Technique: Liner Notes for Hip-Hop JunkiesBrian ColemanBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Anthology of Rap2010The Anthology of RapAdam Bradley & Andrew DuBois, eds.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Best Music Writing 20082008Best Music Writing 2008Nelson George & Daphne Carr, eds.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- That's the Joint! The Hip-Hop Studies Reader2004That's the Joint! The Hip-Hop Studies ReaderMurray Forman & Mark Anthony Neal, eds.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Droppin' Science1996Droppin' Science: Critical Essays on Rap Music and Hip Hop CultureWilliam Eric Perkins, ed.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Rap on Rap1995Rap on RapAdam Sexton, ed.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Encyclopedia of Hip Hop LiteratureYEAR TKEncyclopedia of Hip Hop LiteratureTarshia L. Stanley, ed.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip Hop Matters2005Hip Hop Matters: Politics, Pop Culture, and the Struggle for the Soul of a MovementS. Craig WatkinsBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Born to Use Mics2009Born to Use Mics: Reading Nas's IllmaticMichael Eric Dyson & Sohail Daulatzai, eds.BUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- The Holy or the Broken2012The Holy or the Broken: Leonard Cohen, Jeff Buckley & the Unlikely Ascent of "Hallelujah"Alan LightInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Let's Go Crazy2014Let's Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple RainAlan LightInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Luther2004Luther: The Life and Longing of Luther VandrossCraig SeymourInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Naked2005Naked: Black Women Bare All About Their Skin, Hair, Hips, Lips, and Other PartsAyana Byrd & Akiba Solomon, eds.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- How We Fight White Supremacy2019How We Fight White SupremacyAkiba Solomon & Kenrya Rankin, eds.InterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Q2001Q: The Autobiography of Quincy JonesQuincy JonesInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
The Expansion7 TITLES
Beyond the five boroughs: Houston, London, Watts, and the sneaker wall.
- Chronicling Stankonia2021Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop SouthRegina N. BradleyBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Houston Rap Tapes2013Houston Rap TapesLance Scott WalkerBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- This Is Grime2016This Is GrimeHattie CollinsInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Hip Hop in Houston2013Hip Hop in Houston: The Origin and the LegacyMaco L. FanielBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Sweet Jones2015Sweet Jones: Pimp C's Trill Life StoryJulia BeverlyInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Where'd You Get Those? New York City's Sneaker Culture2003Where'd You Get Those? New York City's Sneaker Culture: 1960–1987Bobbito GarciaInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
- Imperial Courts2015Imperial Courts: 1993–2015Dana LixenbergInterviewedBUY AT THE LIT. BAR →
Coming July 13, 2027 · One World / Penguin Random House
Word Is Bond: The Untold Story of Hip-Hop Journalism
Syreeta Gates's history of hip-hop journalism, built on 100+ original interviews with the writers, editors, photographers and executives who made the magazines, and on The Gates Preserve archive.
Follow @wordisbondarchiveCorrections and additions welcome.