The lore of the early days of hip hop has become the stuff of myth, so
what better way to document this fascinating, epic true story than in
another great American mythological medium -- the comic book? From
exciting young talent and self-proclaimed hip hop nerd Ed Piskor,
acclaimed for his hacker graphic novel Wizzywig, comes this
explosively entertaining, encyclopedic history of the formative years of
the music genre that changed global culture. Originally serialized on
the hugely popular website Boing Boing, The Hip Hop Family Tree is now
collected in a single volume cleverly presented and packaged in a style
mimicking the Marvel comics of the same era. Piskor's exuberant yet
controlled cartooning takes you from the parks and rec rooms of the
South Bronx to the night clubs, recording studios, and radio stations
where the scene started to boom, capturing the flavor of late-1970s New
York City in panels bursting with obsessively authentic detail. With a
painstaking, vigorous and engaging Ken Burns meets- Stan Lee approach,
the battles and rivalries, the technical innovations, the triumphs and
failures are all thoroughly researched and lovingly depicted. plus the
charismatic players behind the scenes like Russell Simmons, Sylvia
Robinson and then-punker Rick Rubin. Piskor also traces graffiti master
Fab 5 Freddy's rise in the art world, and Debbie Harry, Keith Haring,
The Clash, and other luminaries make cameos as the music and culture
begin to penetrate downtown Manhattan and the mainstream at large. Like
the acclaimed hip hop documentaries Style Wars and Scratch, The Hip
Hop Family Tree is an exciting and essential cultural chronicle and a
must for hip hop fans, pop-culture addicts, and anyone who wants to know
how it went down back in the day.