Update: Chat Cancelled.
“There are few people who can put the past seventy years of urban reality into the perspective
of the most recent hip minute like Nelson George. The Plot Against Hip Hop is no exception.
Nelson George braids actual facts and fictional characters flawlessly into a time-tunneled walk
along various developments in this now-megabusiness called hip hop. For those that say they
love hip hop as well as the total legacy it evolved from, it bodes well for them to keep this very
close to their head, heart, and attention.” —Chuck D, Public Enemy
We are pleased to announce that Sunday, November 6, 2011 at 9pm EST The Plot Against Hip Hop author, Nelson George will be our Special Host for #blacklitchat Tweet Chat on Twitter!!!!!!!!!! So all you fans of Hip Hop Culture and Crime Noir, lets have an online book chat with him.
Who is Nelson George?
Nelson George is one of the first writers to document hip hop culture and is the author of several award-winning books on the subject, including Hip Hop America and The Death of Rhythm & Blues; he also coauthored (with Simmons) Russell Simmons’s autobiography Life and Def. He directed Queen Latifah in the HBO film “Life Support”, and is an executive producer of VH1’s long-running Hip Hop Honors broadcast.
What is The Plot Against Hip Hop?
The Plot Against Hip Hop is a noir novel set in the world of hip hop culture. The stabbing murder of esteemed music critic Dwayne Robinson in a Soho office building is dismissed by the NYPD as a gang initiation. But his old friend, bodyguard/security expert D Hunter, suspects there’s much more to his death. An old cassette tape, the theft of a manuscript Robinson wasworking on, and some veiled threats suggest there are larger forces at work.
D Hunter’s investigation into his mentor’s murder leads into a parallel history of hip hop, a place where renegade government agents, behind-the-scenes power brokers, and paranoid journalists know a truth that only a few hard core fans suspect. This rewrite of hip hop history mixes real-life figures including Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Russell Simmons with characterspulled from the culture’s hidden world, as Illuminati, FBI agents, and West Coast gangstas roam the hard streets D Hunter walks down.
D Hunter is a tough, black-clad product of crime-ridden Brownsville, Brooklyn, a man whose family has been devastated by violence and who has dedicated himself to protecting people in an age of insecurity. Hunter has his own secrets, his own vulnerabilities, which he fights to overcome as he becomes a reluctant private eye. After reading The Plot Against Hip Hop, you’ll never hear the music the same way.
What Others are Saying about Nelson George?
“Nelson George is one of my greatest influences as a writer . . . He inspired me in many ways,
and he continues to inspire with The Plot Against Hip Hop.” —Talib Kweli
“One of our coolest cultural critics has written a mystery page-turner about the underbelly of
hip hop, and it’s woven with signature whip-smart insights into music. Nelson George’s smooth
security-guard-turned-detective, a.k.a. D, scours a demimonde as glamorous as Chandler’s Los
Angeles. This plot has more twists and turns than a pole dancer, and D definitely needs an
encore—he’s destined to become a classic.” —Mary Karr, author of The Liars’ Club
What is BlackLit Chat?
It's a stream of tweets about books by Black[including Pan-African, African-American, Brit, Caribbean, Canadian Black, etc.] authors in real time during a specified time. Our time for this chat is Sunday, October 17, 2010 from 7-8 PM EST. Remember it here via Facebook athttp://www.facebook.com/blacklitchat.How does it Work? 3 Easy Steps
- Get a Twitter account, or login, or remember your Twitter Password.
- Join the chat by clicking this link.http://twebevent.com/blacklitchat
- Now login with your Twitter Password.
- To join the conversation on October 30, please follow #blacklitchat on Twitter for a conversation moderated by (@BernadetteDavis) and (me) @deegospel. And if you aren't already, follow @nelsongeorge
