The 'Hood Comes First: Race, Space, and Place in Rap and Hip-Hop (Music/Culture)

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Summary: Crucial issues concerning rap and hip-hop music
Review: The 'Hood Comes First: Race, Space, And Place In Rap And Hip-Hop by Murray Forman (Associate Professor of Communication Studies, Northeastern University) is an exhaustive, college-level study of crucial issues concerning rap and hip-hop music. From regretful commentary on the murders of prominent music figures Tupac Shakur and Notorious B.I.G. to an analysis of the evolution of hip-hop to the interaction of place and personal identity, The 'Hood Comes First is a very serious, seminal, and ground breaking look at a unique brand of American music and its social/cultural context.