Dan Charnas - The Big Payback : The History of the Business of Hip-Hop

PRAISE FOR

THE BIG PAYBACK

Exhaustive yet vigorous.

The New York Times

The ultimate hip-hop blueprint.

The Source

Charnas epic account of the musics rise from Bronx parks to Wall Street is gripping, stylish, impossible to put down.

Flavorpill

A must-have for any rap fan.

XXL

Charnas American success story unfolds vividly and briskly, and no hustle goes unturned.

Rolling Stone (4 stars)

[Charnas] brings to life the story of the dollars behind the ballers in this absorbing account of hip-hops transformation from South Bronx cottage industry to multibillion-dollar global business.

Spin

The rap tome you have to read. Dan Charnas chronicle of the genres rise to multibillion-dollar industry is essential. Wisely, The Big Payback focuses not on the beefs you know but on the back-room battles you dont.

Details

The book does a page-turningly good job of detailing the clashes between key figures like Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin. Charnas has done a real service to pop history by following the money.

New York Daily News

Dan Charnas detailed and colorful account of hip-hop history and its fusion of art and commerce is a must read for fans of the music industry. His time embedded in a tumultuous, momentous environment doesnt so much compromise his objectivityas allow him to get the kind of juicy details no one else has reportedthe boardroom brawls, the moguls who mentored.

Los Angeles Times

Charnas did an incredible reporting job and the book is a delicious read. It doesnt matter if you love hip-hop or not, this book is just an incredible epic about business and culture in America.

The Atlantic

[Charnas] writes with the authority of an insider, the passion of a fan, and the cool eye of someone who has maneuvered through the day-to-day working of the business. Nuanced treatment of the impresarios behind signature sounds and recording empires and brisk, dramatic vignettes give this history of a leaderless revolution impressive momentum.

Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Monumental in every waya constant revelation. Every page is loaded with fresh, acutely detailed, great stories delivered in bite-size, and Charnas snappy pace makes getting through its 650-some pages a pleasure.

The Onion A.V. Club

The Big Payback isnt just the most comprehensive journalistic account of hip-hop ever writtenits a mature, Pulitzerworthy work, an integral account of essential urban history on a par with Robert A. Caros The Power Broker.

The Boston Phoenix

The Big Payback stands out as a must read for any fanor detractorof the genre.

Forbes

The riveting dialogue culled from more than three hundred interviews makes it seem as if Charnas was in the room for every detail that ever went down in hip-hop, and sometimes he was.

The Austin Chronicle

Hands-down, one of the best books ever written about hip-hop Absolutely essentialthis isnt just the most important book on hip-hop thats come out in years; its one of the most important books on pop music, period.

Oliver Wang, Soul-Sides.com

Charnas has the shrewdness and experience as a journalist to pull it off extremely well. [He] is a highly skilled chronicler of the forty years that have paved the way to hip-hops present. The staggering anecdotes knock your mind around, but the excellence of the storytelling will have you surrendering them out loud to your fellow fans.

KEXP.com

Charnas captures an epic story full of joy and pain, triumph and failure, grace and greed with the skills of a journalist, the wisdom of an insider and the passion of a microphone fiend.

Jeff Chang, author of Cant Stop Wont Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation and Total Chaos: The Art and Aesthetics of Hip-Hop

His cast of charactersproducers, agents, label executives, talent scoutsis every bit as compelling and dramatic as the musicians themselves. Its an unforgettable odyssey.

Samuel G. Freedman, New York Times columnist and author of Upon This Rock, Who She Was, and Jew vs. Jew

[A] stunning achievement. Not only does it manage to pack in countless unprecedented anecdotes about hip-hop that you cant find anywhere elsethe read is effortlessly smooth.

Cheo H. Coker, coscreenwriter of Notorious and author of Unbelievable: The Life, Death, and Afterlife of the NotoriousB.I.G.

THE

BIG
PAYBACK

The History of the
Business of Hip-Hop

DAN CHARNAS

NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY

NEW AMERICAN LIBRARY

Published by New American Library, a division of

Penguin Group (USA) Inc., 375 Hudson Street,

New York, New York 10014, USA

Published by New American Library, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. Previously published in a New American Library hardcover edition.

First New American Trade Paperback Library Printing, November 2011

Copyright Dan Charnas, 2010

All rights reserved

REGISTERED TRADEMARKMARCA REGISTRADA

New American Library Trade Paperback ISBN: 978-1-101-44582-2

THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS HAS CATALOGED THE HARDCOVER EDITION OF THIS TITLE AS FOLLOWS:

Charnas, Dan.

The big payback: the history of the business of hip-hop/Dan Charnas.

p. cm.

Includes index.

1. Rap (Music)Social aspects. 2. Hip-hop. 3. Hip-hopSocial aspects.

4. Sound recording industry. 5. Music trade. I. Title.

ML3918.R37C52 2010

304.484249dc22 2010016062

Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.

PUBLISHERS NOTE

While the author has made every effort to provide accurate telephone numbers and Internet addresses at the time of publication, neither the publisher nor the author assumes any responsibility for errors, or for changes that occur after publication. Further, publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party Web sites or their content.

The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions, and do not participate in or encourage electronic piracy of copyrighted materials. Your support of the authors rights is appreciated.

Version_3

For Wendy and Isaac

NOTE FROM THE AUTHOR

T his is a book about an American success story.

In 1977 hip-hop was a marginal urban subculture, largely confined to two of the most notorious ghettos in the United States, Harlem and the South Bronx. Over three decades later, hip-hop has become global culture itself, spanning music, language, film, television, books, fashion, sports, and politics. Hip-hop supplanted rock and roll as the signature creative expression for a new generation. It became a multibillion-dollar industry, transcending entertainment and moving into consumer products and services.