Houston Rap Tapes : An Oral History of Bayou City Hip-Hop

The neighborhoods of Fifth Ward, Fourth Ward, Third Ward, and the Southside of Houston, Texas, gave birth to Houston rap, a vibrant music scene that has produced globally recognized artists such as Geto Boys, DJ Screw, Pimp C and Bun B of UGK, Fat Pat, Big Moe, Z-Ro, Lil' Troy, and Paul Wall. Lance Scott Walker and photographer Peter Beste spent a decade documenting Houston's scene, interviewing and photographing the people—rappers, DJs, producers, promoters, record label owners—and places that give rap music from the Bayou City its distinctive character. Their collaboration produced the books Houston Rap and Houston Rap Tapes . This second edition of Houston Rap Tapes amplifies the city's hip-hop history through new interviews with Scarface, Slim Thug, Lez Moné, B L A C K I E, Lil' Keke, and Sire Jukebox of the original Ghetto Boys. Walker groups the interviews into sections that track the different eras and movements in Houston rap, with new photographs and album art that reveal the evolution of the scene from the 1970s to today's hip-hop generation. The interviews range from the specifics of making music to the passions, regrets, memories, and hopes that give it life. While offering a view from some of Houston's most marginalized areas, these intimate conversations lay out universal struggles and feelings. As Willie D of Geto Boys writes in the foreword, " Houston Rap Tapes flows more like a bunch of fellows who haven't seen each other for ages, hanging out on the block reminiscing, rather than a calculated literary guide to Houston's history." "Houston Rap Tapes" is the companion to "Houston Rap," Peter Beste's intimate photo book on this important hip hop culture. "Houston Rap Tapes" complements Beste's photography with a series of oral histories conducted by writer Lance Scott Walker. The book features exclusive interviews with legendary producers and MCs such as Bun B, Willie D, Paul Wall, Z-Ro, Big Mike, DJ DMD, K-Rino, Salih Williams and Lil' Troy, alongside stories from old school masters like MC Wickett Crickett and Rick Royal. The life stories of the Houston rap scene are also represented by an assortment of radio and club personalities, impresarios, ex-pimps, former drug dealers and members of the community. Lance Scott Walker and Peter Beste spent nine years documenting the most influential style in twenty-first-century hip hop and the vibrant inner-city culture from which it stems. Portraying a vibrant, but often overlooked, music scene, this amplified edition of Houston Rap Tapes includes new interviews of Scarface, Slim Thug, Lez Moné, B L A C K I E, Lil' Keke, and Sire Jukebox of the original Ghetto Boys, as well as many additional photographs. Portraying a vibrant, but often overlooked, music scene, this amplified edition of Houston Rap Tapes includes new interviews of Scarface, Slim Thug, Lez Mone, B L A C K I E, Lil' Keke, and Sire Jukebox of the original Ghetto Boys, as well as many addition