Book : DANNY HASTINGS - LEGENDARIO - ACT 1 : ROUGH, RUGGED & RAW

 

" Legendario is a three-part photographic retrospective by renowned photographer Danny Hastings, celebrating the evolution of his groundbreaking career that helped define hip-hop’s visual identity. Each volume represents a distinct era—three “acts” that chronicle his artistic growth, creative experimentation, and cultural impact.

Act I: Rough, Rugged and Raw (1992–1994) marks the beginning of Hastings’ visual journey—the training years that shaped his vision and set the tone for everything that followed. Shot entirely on film, this first volume captures the raw energy of New York’s streets during one of hip-hop’s most explosive eras. The work is unfiltered and pure—filled with the grain, grit, and emotion that can only come from analog photography. " - courtesy of Danny Hastings' website

Hard Cover, 8.5 x 8.5, Full Color, 200 Pages.

Dropping October 28th 2025.

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Book : VINYL NYC: 33 1/3 of the Best Record Stores Across All Five Boroughs

" Explore New York’s vibrant vinyl scene with this tribute to 33 1/3 of the city’s favorite record shops, as captured by acclaimed photographers James and Karla Murray. 

Spanning all 5 boroughs, these havens have become essential to the cultural fabric of the city, bringing together communities through a shared passion for music.

This book takes readers on a journey through New York City’s iconic record shops, celebrating their history, character, and cultural significance. Featuring stunning new photographs by James and Karla Murray, it captures the vibrant exteriors, intimate interiors, and countless musical treasures that make these shops special.

Detailed profiles penned by journalist Hattie Lindert reveal the stories behind each location, with insights from the owners and founders about their passion for music and the communities they serve. From the punk rock legacy of Generation Records in Greenwich Village to the jazz treasures of Manhattan’s Jazz Record Center; the Latin music heritage of Casa Amadeo in the Bronx, and the rare finds at Brooklyn’s Human Head Records; the book showcases the diversity and richness of NYC’s vinyl culture.

It also includes profiles on legendary local musicians who frequent these stores, including producer and rapper Large Professor, DJ and nightclub owner Eli Escobar, and DJ and music supervisor Kristine Barilli. Designed with colorful elements inspired by record shop ephemera, it’s a must-have for music lovers and vinyl collectors alike."

224 Pages Hardcover 8.25 x 10.50 inches. Available September 9, 2025

Pre-Order : Amazon / Rough Trade  

Book : Hip-Hop Rising: Profiles of the 90s.

 

Here is an interesting brand new book for your collection dropped by Martin Pearson & Deverill Weekes. Back in the early 1990s Martin Pearson was a music journalist in London and Los Angeles, and a huge hip-hop fan for many years. Among many other publications, he used to work for Hip-Hop Connection in the UK and he interviewed many artist big and small from that era. He has recently put together a retrospective book of his work (with contemporary commentary). It's called Hip-Hop Rising: Profiles of the 90s.

Photos courtesy of Deverill Weekes

" Hip Hop Rising: Profiles of the 90s revisits the golden era of hip hop with striking images and fascinating interviews. The book is based on the original 1990s’ journalism and photography by Martin Pearson and Deverill Weekes, two Londoners transplanted to Los Angeles in the 90s. It offers a rare glimpse inside the creative and controversial minds of the likes of Ice Cube, Wu-Tang Clan, Queen Latifah, Beastie Boys, Eazy-E, The Pharcyde—more than forty interviews in all. "

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Book : Dust & Grooves Volume 2

" Renowned photographer and publisher Eilon Paz returns after the successful release of Dust & Grooves: Adventures In Record Collecting. For Volume Two, Paz highlights the planet’s biggest proponents of vinyl collecting, bridging stunning images with extensive interviews, revealing the motives and backstories behind the global vinyl community. Ten years after the first release, with vinyl sales skyrocketing and a booming popularity among Gen-Zs, Volume Two digs deeper than its predecessor, underscoring gorgeous collections from astute everyday enthusiasts to venerated DJs, musicians, and producers. Veteran journalist and editor David Ma handles the editorial end to this sequel, making Volume Two a cultural leader in the field, expertly accentuating the world’s unifying devotion to vinyl. 

Tailor made for lovers of world-class photography, novice and expert collectors, and music obsessives alike. "

 

Foreword by Prince Paul 

Includes interviews with A-Trak, DaM Funk, Quantic, DJ Spinna, Kid Koala, Don Letts, Andy Votel, Mayer Hawthorne and more.

Ships October 15, 2024 

First limited edition of 4000 copies

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Book : The Book Of Rhyme & Reason - 2023

 

Real Art Press and Peter Spirer deliver a photographic inside look at the making of the pioneering hip-hop documentary Rhyme & Reason released in 1997. Big thanks to my man Steph for the info. 

"In the mid-nineties, documentarian Peter Spirer embarked on a three-year odyssey to offer a realistic view of Hip-Hop and the people and culture it encompassed, interviewing over 80 artists involved in the art form. Spirer managed to capture a seminal moment as the culture balanced on the cusp of the mainstream. As Ice-T comments in his foreword to the book, 'Rhyme & Reason is one of the few films that was there to document us before Hip-Hop truly exploded.' While filming, Spirer took accompanying stills using a medium format Rolleiflex camera. It is these photographs that form The Book Of Rhyme & Reason. 'The Rollei allowed me to capture some amazing moments: Puffy getting a trim in his office while doing three tasks at once, Biggie opening record plaques on his couch, Ice-T and Mack 10 hanging with their homies, Heavy D at the barber, playing pool. There was the Jack The Rapper convention with Death Row making a statement, at a Disney World Hotel, that ended in chaos. There were magical moments such as Redman and Erick Sermon freestyling on the mic to amazed onlookers at a block party in Newark and watching Wu-Tang Clan chop it up on the block in Staten Island on a cold winter's day before they exploded.' This coffee table volume features over 130 of Spirer's photographs from 1994 to 1997. As Hip-Hop commemorates its fiftieth anniversary in 2023, it is particularly fitting that many of these images from this formative period are being seen and published for the first time."

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Book : Get Hype! - A Collection of Hip Hop Ads, Promo Kits & Records

 

The full version of the booklet "Never Get Enough", which was sold out in an instant, is now on sale. The world's first visual art book specialized in hip-hop records and their promo materials. If you turn the page once, you will return to that era when everyone was enthusiastic.

The ultimate visual art collection "Get Hype!"... Focusing on 90's rap works, the author, who is a world-famous collector of rap records, collects not only records, but also magazine advertisements of the time, artist promotional materials distributed only to those involved, and promotional goods. Such treasured collections are carefully selected for each artist in full color on all pages. A new frontier of hip-hop visual art that invites beginners to advanced players to take their record collection to the next level.

Full color 164 pages (including cover), with promo stuff from Wu-Tang Clan, A Tribe Called Quest, Nas, Mobb Deep, Gang Starr, The Notorious B.I.G., Ultramagnetic Mc's, D.I.T.C., Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, Dr. Dre, Snoop Doggy Dogg, 2Pac and many more...

Order your copy (from Japan only) : Disk Union / Wenod  

Book : Do Remember! The Golden Era of NYC Hip-Hop Mixtapes

Evan Auerbach (UpNorthTrips) and Daniel Isenberg drop an interesting book about The Golden Era of NYC Hip-Hop Mixtapes.  

"Do Remember! The Golden Era of NYC Hip-Hop Mixtapes is the first comprehensive deep-dive oral and visual history of the golden era of hip-hop mixtape culture in New York City.

From street corners to corner offices, mixtapes made a huge impact on the music industry and hip-hop culture in New York City during the late ’80s, ’90s, and early 2000s. Mixtapes helped dictate what rap songs were hot in the clubs, on the radio, and in the streets, and they influenced which artists would get signed to record deals. Mixtapes also showcased which DJs had the most skills and creativity, and who had the juice to pull the illest exclusives.

Do Remember! combines the best elements of oral and pictorial histories to explore the evolution of mixtapes as a crucial component of New York City hip-hop culture. Featuring a comprehensive collection of rare mixtape cover art, never-before-seen images, vintage tracklists, and exclusive interviews with Kid Capri, Brucie B, Mister Cee, Ron G, S&S, Doo Wop, Green Lantern, Lord Finesse, Clark Kent, Bobbito, Cipha Sounds, Havoc of Mobb Deep, the late, great DJ Kay Slay, and many more, including a special foreword by Fab 5 Freddy, Do Remember! captures an era in New York City that went on to inspire future hip-hop generations all over the world." - courtesy of Rizzoli NY

Release Date : October 17th 2023

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Book : Playboys by Robert Yager

Here is a book dedicated to the Golden Era of Los Angeles Street Gangs, with photos shot by British photographer Robert Yager in the neighborhoods of central LA between 1992 and the early 2000s. This hard cover book includes artwork by members and is 144 images on 260 pages (Limited Edition of 550 Hardcover with foil stamped / Dimensions: 32 x 22 cm). Order your copy at 550BC.com  

Book : A Time Before Crack By Jamel Shabazz - 2022

 

powerHouse Books drop a brand new reissue of the excellent "A Time Before Crack" by Jamel Shabazz. This new edition includes a new cover, additional images, and updated text written by new contributors (Hardcover, 7.5 x 10 inches, 184 pages). If you missed the first version, it's time to grab this one... Don't Sleep Fellas !!! Order

Sue Kwon - RAP IS RISEN: New York Photographs 1988–2008

 

The legendary Photographer Sue Kwon is coming back soon with her second book "RAP IS RISEN: New York Photographs 1988–2008". 

"The last decade of the 20th century into the first decade of the 21st represent a High Renaissance age of hip hop―an era in which rap music had reached critical mass and was exploding, and in which New York City itself witnessed the worldwide ascension and cultural domination of its powerful homegrown art form. In Rap Is Risen: New York Photographs 1988–2008, celebrated photographer Sue Kwon documents this era with a combination of incisive portraits and unposed, spontaneous images that capture the energy of these ascendant artists and the city itself.

With access to some of rap music’s biggest legends―some stars already, some at the cusp of their fame―Kwon’s work offers an intimacy rarely seen in the hip hop photography of the time. The Wu-Tang Clan, Biggie Smalls, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Big Pun, Eminem, Mobb Deep, the Beastie Boys, Big L, Ice Cube, De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest are all represented here, as well as dozens of other DJs and artists that communed with Kwon to produce these images. Method Man brushing his teeth, Fat Joe playing softball in the Bronx, Prince Paul kissing his baby son―the trust inherent between subject and photographer is evident in intimate, joyful shots like these.

Giving a rare glimpse into real rap culture, and featuring 300 photographs, most of which have never been published before, Rap Is Risen is a necessary offering to music history and the faithful followers of hip hop."

Release Date : November 16, 2021

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Chuck D Presents Apocalypse 91: Revolution Never Sleeps

 

"Celebrate the 30th anniversary of the landmark album Apocalypse 91: The Enemy Strikes Black with this commemorative sequel graphic anthology! Apocalypse 91: Revolution Never Sleeps begins on the familiar backdrop of 1991 and explodes into far-flung futures with a series of speculative fiction stories by the industry's leading creators, including Evan Narcisse (Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales), Regine Sawyer (Dark Nights: Death Metal), Che Grayson (Batman: Urban Legends), Troy-Jeffrey Allen (Villain: All Caps), and many more! Witness revolutionaries in every millennium stand up and fight the power with a little help from the rhythms and rebels of the past." - Z2 Comics

- STANDARD EDITION (Softcover) includes Softcover graphic novel.

- STANDARD EDITION (Hardcover) includes Hardcover graphic novel.

- DELUXE EDITION (Oversized Hardcover, Limited Edition of only 2,500) includes Oversized Hardcover Deluxe Edition Graphic Novel / Graphic Novel Slipcase / 'Apocalypse 91: The Enemy Strikes Black' LP on Limited Edition Colored Vinyl / Three Exclusive Art Prints.

- SUPER DELUXE EDITION (Hand-signed by Chuck D, Oversized Hardcover, Limited Edition of only 500) includes Oversized Hardcover Deluxe Edition Graphic Novel, signed by Chuck D / Graphic Novel Slipcase / 'Apocalypse 91: The Enemy Strikes Black' LP on Limited Edition Colored Vinyl / Four ed Art Prints, one of which is illustrated by Chuck D and also framed. 

Release Date : November 2021

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Book : ELEMENTS Magazine Book

 

If you're looking for a Christmas gift, here is something for you ... The ELEMENTS Magazine Book !!! This is a limited edition, Hardcover book (300 pages -  Size: 8.75” x 11.25”) printed by FlipNJay Records in which you can revisit the old original copies of Elements magazine printed in the 90s. 

Photo courtesy of FlipNJay Records 

Bundles are also available including Rascalz "Dreaded Fist" b/w "Soul Obligation" 7" single and the ELEMENTS cover Tee... 

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Book : Egostrip - Book 1

If you want to see the Egostrip Project in your hands one day, one thing to do ... Please register your genuine interest by signing up to the mailing list on www.egostripbook.com . With your support Dan Lich will launch Egostrip Book One as a Kickstarter campaign in order to professionally produce a very collectable book. 

Book : Rare & Unseen Moments Of 90's HipHop Vol.1,2 & 3

"T. Eric Monroe is opening his historic vault of 90's photography to preserve and promote the legacies of iconic personas who shaped Hiphop culture.

Featuring thousands of intimate moments in music history, Monroe's body of work represents a fresh and unseen perspective of cultural icons from the 90's Hiphop Community, at a time before the Internet, social media, and digital photography. A large majority of his images were never published and kept out of all commercial outlets, archived away for decades. This archive was safeguarded from public consumption... until now." - T Dot Eric 

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Youth Culture Power : Book + Album

"In our schools, Hip-Hop culture is the dominant culture among the students. In Youth Culture Power : A #HipHopEd Guide to Building Student Teacher Relationships and Increasing Student Engagement, Jason D. Rawls and John Robinson, educators and hip-hop artists with experience in the classrooms of urban schools, focus their efforts through Hip-Hop Based Education (HHBE). They argue that Hip-Hop culture could be useful in building relationships and building student engagement. The approach to achieve this is Youth Culture Pedagogy (YCP). In this volume, the authors lay the groundwork for YCP and how they envision its use within the classroom. YCP is based in a Foundation of Reality Pedagogy (Emdin, 2014), Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (Ladson-Billings, 1995), and HHBE (Hill, 2009; Petchauer, 2009). We define it as a pedagogical approach which uses students own culture to create scenarios to facilitate learning.In Youth Culture Power, the authors put forth their C.A.R.E. Model of youth pedagogy to help teachers create a positive learning environment by building relationships and lessons around students’ own culture. Instead of forcing students to give up the things they frequent, they feel teachers should discuss them and when possible, use them in lessons. The purpose of this book is to present a fresh take on why educators should not discount the culture of youth within the classroom. Book & Album will be available on 6/1/19" - John Robinson