memoir

Rapper Memoirs You Should Read Immediately

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The ability to write a quality rap song is quite remarkable and requires its very own set of skills. Since hip hop’s inception, rappers have been able to tell their life stories through rap songs. Rap music is often very autobiographical, but many notable rappers have penned memoirs to tell their stories in a way that is completely separate from music.

Rapper memoirs are becoming increasingly popular, with Black Thought recently announcing his book for a November release date. JAY-Z, Raekwon, Common, U-God, 50 Cent, and Fat Joe have all told their stories from childhood to success as adults in their books. Some rappers have also taken unique approaches to write non-autobiographical books, such as Russ’s It’s All In Your Head, which inspires readers to follow one’s passions through reflective chapters of motivational material. Wretch 32’s Rapthology: Lessons in Life and Lyrics book takes a unique approach as well, as he takes a look back at his career through particular songs and lyrics. Hip hop musicians like DJ Khaled, Timbaland, and Questlove have also written books, especially the latter, who has also published other non-music related books.

LL Cool J – I Make My Own Rules (1997)

As one of hip hop’s first superstars, it was only right for LL Cool J to be one of the first rappers to write a memoir. I Make My Own Rules was published in 1997 and was written alongside Karen Hunter. The book takes the reader through his life, from struggles during childhood to success as a hip hop star. He details his journey from the creation of his name to his successful albums.

DMX – E.A.R.L.: The Autobiography of DMX (2003)

It does not get more autobiographical than E.A.R.L. as DMX vividly paints a picture of some of the darkest times in his life growing up. With the help of Smokey D Fontaine, DMX wrote a captivating memoir that depicts his rough upbringing, how he fell in love with rhyme, and what made him want to pursue music. 

RZA – The Tao of Wu (2009)

The Tao of Wu was not RZA’s first book. 2004’s The Wu-Tang Manual provided the ultimate guide for all things Wu-Tang Clan. The Tao of Wu, on the other hand, is RZA’s own personal story. The book starts with a depiction of his childhood and how his method of thinking eventually evolved into the wisdom he has as the leader of hip hop’s most iconic group. The book includes stories of the Wu-Tang Clan’s inception and the personal hardships he endured along the way.

Prodigy – My Infamous Life (2011)

Prodigy had so many stories to tell, which is what makes My Infamous Life an essential read for any hip hop fan. The book consists of Prodigy’s time in the streets as a kid, how he developed his relationship with Havoc to create Mobb Deep, as well as his battle with sickle-cell anemia. The book was released following Prodigy’s time in prison and tells first-hand accounts of the rap legend’s ups and downs, including hit songs and rap beefs.

Lecrae – Unashamed (2016)

The first of two books that Lecrae has written, Unashamed is his memoir that tells his story. In the book, Lecrae details his childhood and hardships as a young adult that led him to religion. The book is an in-depth look into Lecrae’s life and dedication to Christianity. He channeled his faith into music and became the biggest name in the Christian rap community.

Gucci Mane – The Autobiography of Gucci Mane (2018)

With the help of Neil Martinez-Belkin, Gucci Mane reveals a lot about himself in his autobiography, which is not what listeners normally get from his music. He details his life as a kid and how he was raised, his deep criminal history, and how music was an outlet to express himself. Gucci Mane’s autobiography is also a story of transformation from one of the South’s most notorious gangsta rappers to a reformed man fresh out of prison.

Rick Ross – Hurricanes: A Memoir (2019)

Much like Gucci Mane’s autobiography, Rick Ross’s memoir, Hurricanes also sees him more transparent than ever. Coincidentally, the book was also co-written by Neil Martinez-Belkin. Rick Ross touches upon growing up in Miami and wanting a more affluent lifestyle. He gets into his criminal past, addresses his past controversies, and tells the story behind every single album. Ross also gets into his most significant collaborations and famous success stories.

Rakim – Sweat the Technique: Revelations on Creativity from the Lyrical Genius (2019)

With a long career and profound influence on hip hop, Rakim’s memoir was long overdue. His 2019 book sees the hip hop pioneer breaking down his writing process. He looks at music from a unique perspective while providing personal anecdotes. It is a first-hand account of Rakim’s influence that still permeates hip hop culture today.

Talib Kweli – Vibrate Higher: A Rap Story (2020)

Vibrate Higher is a story about Talib Kweli as a rapper and person. Throughout the book, he discusses his Brooklyn roots, how his parents raised him, and what got him into hip hop. The Brooklyn legend started his career at such a pivotal time in hip hop, witnessing history in real-time, which he talks about in his memoir. Kweli writes about his albums, collaborations, and relationships in the book and addresses his most controversial views.

Action Bronson – F*ck It, I’ll Start Tomorrow: A True Story (2021)

Action Bronson has written books about his love for food and weed, but F*ck It, I’ll Start Tomorrow is about him. Most rapper memoirs focus on the span of the artist’s entire life but Bronson’s book hones in on his recent weight loss journey. He provides stories about his upbringing and his deep connection to food. Bronson goes into what made him want to start living a healthier lifestyle and how he has accepted himself no matter his appearance.

Logic – This Bright Future: A Memoir (2021)

By the time he had published his memoir, Logic was already a New York Times best-selling author for his novel, Supermarket. Logic has chronicled his childhood trauma and turbulent relationship with his parents in music and interviews, but this book is Logic at his most revealing. Published under his government name, This Bright Future tells Logic’s success story, breaking the cycle of poverty and dealing with the struggles of fame.

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Black Thought Announces New Memoir

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Black Thought, the prolific emcee in The Roots, legal name Tariq Trotter has announced the release of a new memoir. The legendary wordsmith stated the memoir The Upcycled Self is years in the making. Not only that, the book is set to be released on November, 14th on One World. However, preorders are open right now. In a statement from the publisher, the memoir is described as “a beautifully bluesy story of a boy genius’s coming of age. “Trotter explores the vital questions we all have to confront about our formative years,” added the publisher.

Furthermore, the publisher mentions that Black Thought explores multiple questions like forgiving the people who love and hurt us. Not only that the book also dives into confronting the question of how to honor and rediscover our first dreams. “The Upcycled Self doesn’t just narrate a riveting and moving portrait of the artist as a young man, but gives readers a courageous model of what it means to live an examined life,” detailed the publisher. Black Thought has never cheated fans when it comes to putting out great work. Reportedly the memoir is filled with vivid vignettes. Thought pens the stories of the four powerful relationships that molded him.

Black Thought Pens Vivid Memoir

In an Instagram post announcing the book, Black Thought wrote in his caption that “The storytelling continues. The medium is ever evolving.” The Streams of Thought emcee has always brought us works of immaculate raps through his work with The Roots and his solo projects. Additionally, the prolific rhymer also wrote in his caption that the book is “a focus on childhood forged from the fire.” If Black Thoughts memoir is anything like his music, it’s surely a must-read. Furthermore, the legendary rapper expresses how proud he is of this project and how he hopes this book opens up bigger conversations.

However, this isn’t the only project Black Thought has been working on as of late. Recently he revealed that he was in album mode detailing the release of his highly anticipated Streams of Thought Vol. 4. Moreover, The Roots co-founder also dropped a collaboration project with the soulful El Michel’s Affair. Are you grabbing a copy of Black Thought’s new memoir? Are you hyped for Streams of Thought Vol. 4? Let us know in the comments below.

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Matthew Perry Vows To Remove Controversial Keanu Reeves Insult From His Book

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Matthew Perry has promised to remove his controversial comment on Keanu Reeves from his new book, Friends, Lovers, and the Big Terrible Thing. The Friends star infamously asked why River Phoenix and Chris Farley are dead yet Reeves gets to go on living. Perry confirmed that future prints of his memoir will no longer feature the line about Reeves at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books on Saturday.

“I said a stupid thing. It was a mean thing to do,” Perry said at the festival. “I pulled his name because I live on the same street. I’ve apologized publicly to him. Any future versions of the book will not have his name in it.” He added that he hasn’t had the chance to apologize to him in person. “If I run into the guy, I’ll apologize. It was just stupid,” said Perry.

Matthew Perry At The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books

Los Angeles, CA – April 22: New York Times bestselling author Matthew Perry speaks about his book with Matt Brennan during the 28th Annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at the University of Southern California on Saturday, April 22, 2023 in Los Angeles, CA. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images).

As for the controversial passage in question, it reads: “River was a beautiful man, inside and out — too beautiful for this world, it turned out. It always seems to be the really talented guys who go down. Why is it that the original thinkers like River Phoenix and Heath Ledger die, but Keanu Reeves still walks among us? River was a better actor than me; I was funnier. But I certainly held my own in our scenes — no small feat, when I look back decades later.”

The John Wick star hasn’t commented on the book publically but a source for Us Weekly said after it was published that “Keanu thought the comments came out of left field. It’s kind of backfired on Matthew anyway, which is why he had to apologize.” After the backlash came in the wake of the book’s release, Perry quickly released a statement apologizing.

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Brittney Griner To Release Memoir On Russian Detainment

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WNBA star Brittney Griner is working on a memoir to recount her “unfathomable” experiences in Russia. She was detained in the country for just under 300 days last year. The former All-Star announced the book in a statement shared on Tuesday. It will release in the spring of 2024.

“That day (in February) was the beginning of an unfathomable period in my life which only now am I ready to share,” Griner said in the statement released by Alfred A. Knopf. Authorities arrested Griner on smuggling charges as she passed through customs in Moscow. She was carrying cartridges containing less than a gram of medically prescribed hash oil at the time.

Brittney Griner During Her Imprisonment In Russia

US basketball player Brittney Griner (C) is escorted by police before a hearing during her trial on charges of drug smuggling, in Khimki, outside Moscow on August 2, 2022. – Griner was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport in February 2022 just days before Moscow launched its offensive in Ukraine. Speaking at the trial on July 27, Griner said she still did not know how the cartridges ended up in her bag. (Photo by Natalia KOLESNIKOVA / AFP) (Photo by NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images)

Griner continued in her statement: “The primary reason I traveled back to Russia for work that day was because I wanted to make my wife, family, and teammates proud. After an incredibly challenging 10 months in detainment, I am grateful to have been rescued and to be home. Readers will hear my story and understand why I’m so thankful for the outpouring of support from people across the world.” Knopf noted that the book will be “intimate and moving” and that Griner will disclose “in vivid detail her harrowing experience of her wrongful detainment (as classified by the State Department) and the difficulty of navigating the byzantine Russian legal system in a language she did not speak.”

Russia eventually released Griner from captivity in December 2022. She was freed in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. In February, she re-signed with the Phoenix Mercury and plans to play in the team’s upcoming season. The regular season will begin in May.

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Kid Cudi Previews His Memoir On Social Media

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Kid Cudi is working on his memoir, as well as a new album. He promises that there will be new stories that he hasn’t told before. He also claims that the memoir and maybe the album might be published next year. However, he still has not confirmed a release window for them.

Last September, Kid Cudi announced that he was going to write a memoir focused on his “troubled boy” beginnings. At the time, he wrote on Twitter “Tellin my story in my own words is scary, but I feel like it needs to be told. I feel like everything will make a lil more sense as to why you all met such a troubled boy in the beginning.” On March 12, he announced that he had finished 4 or 5 chapters of the memoir. He talked about some of the unheard stories in it. These stories include: how he got interested in music and acting, as well as his upbringing. Cudi hopes the book will inspire people to do something great in their lives.

Kid Cudi’s Final Album

The memoir is not the only thing that Kid Cudi has in the works. He is also working on what might be his final album. Cudi is saying that it might be because it is the final album in his deal with Republic Records. He has also stated that he does not know what he is going to do after the deal is up.

At least he is promising that the album is going to be fire. He has already claimed that it might be “Album of the Year“. He is claiming that because he feels like it is his strongest work. Cudi is claiming that it is the most powerful project he has ever made and that the mixes are going to move his audience. Cudi is claiming that all of the songs are going to be new, but he will also make some of the songs into singles to hold his fans over until the album is done. He has announced that the first single from the album is coming in June.

Paris Hilton Recalls Faking Orgasms & Describes Sex As A “Chore”

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Paris Hilton says that, for years, she considered sex to be a “chore” and would fake orgasms with her sexual partners. Speaking about her sexuality in her new memoir, Paris: The Memoir, she revealed that she once thought she was asexual. Stellar Magazine published an excerpt of the upcoming book on Saturday.

“I could fake it, and I was good at faking it, but it felt like getting run over by a minibike a hundred times,” she wrote. “I thought orgasm was something faked so that sex could be over. I kept trying to make it work.” She also revealed that she’d make suitors wait months, even years before getting intimate. “It was pretty rare for a guy to get past the make-out stage. Some of them waited for months or even a year.” Despite being, “known as a sex symbol” Paris also confessed that “anything sexual terrified me.” She joked, “I called myself the ‘kissing bandit’ because I only liked to make out. A lot of my relationships didn’t work out because of that.”

Paris Hilton With Britney Spears In 2008

LOS ANGELES, CA – SEPTEMBER 07: TV Personality Paris Hilton and Singer Britney Spears at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards at Paramount Pictures Studios on September 7, 2008 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Chris Polk/FilmMagic)

“The truth is, I wanted to be alive in a sensual way. I wanted to feel like a woman who’s comfortable in her own skin. I was struggling to understand my sexuality; there’s no way I could have explained it to anyone else. I had no language for it. I’d never heard the word asexual. I know, right?” she added.

Hilton also discussed getting an abortion at the age of 22. “Choosing to have an abortion can be an intensely private agony that’s impossible to explain. The only reason I’m talking about it now is that so many women are facing it, and they feel so alone and judged and abandoned. I want them to know that they’re not alone, and they don’t owe anyone an explanation,” she said.

Paris: The Memoir is due out on March 14. Elsewhere in the book, Hilton discusses the infamous sex tape made with ex-boyfriend Rick Salomon, her teenage years, her feelings about being a celebrity, and more.

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Pamela Anderson Memoir: Actress Didn’t Know Tommy Lee’s Last Name During 1995 Elopement

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Pamela Anderson is everywhere lately. Ahead of her memoir, Love, Pamela‘s debut this week, the mother of two has been making rounds in the press. Specifically, she’s spilling tea about everything from her iconic role in pop culture to her tumultuous love life.

Previously, excerpts from the book surfaced online revealing just some of the juicy gossip to come. The Baywatch starlet claims that she was flashed by Tim Allen on the set of Home Improvement. She also says she helped a famous actor finish during a threesome at the Playboy Mansion without using anything more than her eyes. Additionally, she also has a documentary on Netflix providing some visual aid to her beautiful storytelling.

One of the most well-known romances in Anderson’s life was her whirlwind marriage to Tommy Lee. As Page Six notes, they wed in 1995 during a trip to Mexico, having only known one another for a few days. According to a recounting in her memoir, the 55-year-old didn’t even know her beau’s last name when they eloped.

“On the flight home, I asked him what our last name was, and he said, ‘Lee,’” she writes. “I said, ‘Oh, I thought it was Tommy Lee … something. Jones?’” Anderson’s next question for the musician was where he lives, to which he replied, “Malibu Road.”

Of course, their decision to wed was undeniably sudden, but the Canadian-born bombshell doesn’t regret her decision. Her mother, however, was less than pleased to have missed out on her only daughter’s big day in a white dress. “She couldn’t believe I had gotten married, cried that she had always dreamed of being at her only daughter’s wedding,” the author recalls.

Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson during 1999 MTV Music Awards Party at Lincoln Center in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic, Inc)

Anderson admits that it was “definitely out of character” for her to run away with Lee. Still, she maintains that she was “genuinely happy” and “lost in a sea of love” with him. Their first son, Brandon, was born in 1996. His little brother, Dylan, was born in 1997.

By 1998, the famous couple went their separate ways. According to the Barb Wire lead, their marriage fell apart primarily for two reasons. Firstly, there was the sex tape that was stolen and subsequently went public non-consensually in 1995. After that came her ex’s arrest for spousal abuse, landing him in jail for six months in 1998.

“Neither of us could forgive the other, deep down. We just weren’t equipped to get through it all,” she admits. “I loved to see him with his boys, but the four of us together forever was only a dream.”

Besides her own past romantic relationships, in Love, Pamela, the blonde beauty also recalls some of her visits to the Playboy Mansion. She had a very close working relationship with the salacious magazine and appeared on the cover more times than any other model.

As a result, Anderson frequented parties alongside other A-listers. Apparently, she once saw Jack Nicholson in the midst of a threesome and happened to lock eyes with the actor. Read everything Pamela had to say about that here, and let us know if you’ll be reading her memoir or watching her documentary below.

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