LL Cool J Presents the Streets Win: 50 Years of Hip-Hop Greatness

In this eye-catching survey, LL Cool J teams up with journalists Tobak and Banks to spotlight important players in hip-hop history, from the 1970s, when skeptics believed the genre “had the same shelf life of a carton of milk,” to the moneymaking phenomenon enmeshed in today’s popular culture. Along the way, readers hear from Grandmaster Caz, who’s credited as a writer on the 1979 track “Rapper’s Delight,” which became the first rap track to enter the Billboard top 40 chart, introducing “mainstream America” to “Hip-Hop culture”; Salt-N-Pepa, one of the first all-female rap groups; Dr. Dre, who traces his stellar career as a rapper, producer, and eventually CEO of Aftermath Entertainment; and Ludacris, among the first rappers to bring Southern influences to bear on the East Coast–born musical genre. Entries pair short essays or conversations with each artist with archival photos of the rappers, their notebooks, and vintage cassette tapes. The volume’s unevenness (some artists delve into pivotal moments of their careers or their musical styles, while others are vague or overly general) is made up for by the all-star lineup and the treasure trove of photos. This brings to vivid life the energy and history of hip-hop. (Oct.)