This collection of three hip hop plays by Conrad Murray and his Beats &
Elements collaborators Paul Cree, David Bonnick Junior and Lakeisha
Lynch-Stevens, is the first publication of the critically acclaimed
theatre-maker's work. The three plays use hip hop to highlight the
inequalities produced by the UK's class system, and weave lyricism,
musicality and dialogue to offer authentic accounts of inner-city life
written by working-class Londoners.
The plays are accompanied by two introductory essays: The first gives a
specific social and historical context that helps readers make sense of
the plays, the second positions hip hop as a contemporary literary form
and offers some ways to read hip hop texts as literature. The collection
also includes a foreword by leading hip hop theatre practitioner Jonzi
D, interviews with the Beats & Elements company, and a glossary of words
for students and international readers.