Brithop

Williams's study is thorough and insightful and serves as a good example for ethnomusicologists of critical interdisciplinary textual analysis * Simon Gall, Ethnomusicology Forum *
This book is recommended for libraries with extensive rap/hip-hop collections or collections on contemporary British history. * B. D. Singleton, California State University--San Bernardino, Choice Connect *
Williams's study is thorough and insightful and serves as a good example for ethnomusicologists of critical interdisciplinary textual analysis. He draws attention to and amplifies the voices of a critical cohort of rappers working in a vibrant, undervalued (at least by scholars) artform, giving them the academic attention that the rap scene(s) deserves. * Simon Gall, Ethnomusicology Forum *
Brithop decodes a multicultural cypher of rap voices from around the UK in an insightful, engaging, and provocative exploration of rap lyricism and political commentary. Justin A. Williams simultaneously celebrates and presents astute analysis of a diverse range of artists as they represent, challenge, chronicle, and navigate contemporary Britain. This is a hugely important step in the process of legitimising and recognising rap music's cultural, social, and intellectual worth. * Solareye, Stanley Odd/Dr, Dave Hook, Edinburgh Napier University *
A brilliant and comprehensive analysis of one of the key developments in British music during the last 30 years. Williams knows his stuff — and how to analyse it. This book is set to become a standard text. * Professor Martin Cloonan, Turku Institute for Advanced Studies, Finland *
Justin A. Williams' BRITHOP is a literal tour de force,taking readers on a journey through twenty-first century UK rap and helping them hear how British emcees use beats and rhymes to make their voices heard. With a keen ear for accents, poetic allusions, and political commentary, Williams explores a wide range of artists through the lenses of not only race, gender, and ethnicity, but also class, region, and nationality. By highlighting the vibrancy of Great Britain's multicultural popular music, BRITHOP puts two fingers up to Brexit-era nationalism and refutes narrow conceptions of citizenship and belonging. This is a must-read for anyone interested in understanding contemporary British society as well as hip-hop outside of the United States. * Loren Kajikawa, author of Sounding Race in Rap Songs *