Percy "Master P." Miller came out of one of the toughest slums in New Orleans to found No Limit Records in Richmond, California, on a shoestring budget in 1991. Master P sold his first releases out of the trunk of his car, but he always believed in himself. Thanks to his hard work, within a few years No Limit was one of the most successful hip-hop record labels in the country and Master P was a multi-millionaire. Master P couldn't maintain this level of success, however, and in 2003 the label went bankrupt. Master P began a new label and kept going. In recent years, he has attempted to change the focus of his music to make it more positive, and started Take a Stand Records for that purpose. Now calling himself P. Miller, the rapper/entrepreneur remains active in the music business and also works to help others.

Founded in New Orleans in the early 1990s, Cash Money Records faced an uphill battle as it struggled to gain respect. Brothers Bryan "Baby" Williams and Ronald "Slim" Williams started the label by recording New Orleans artists who were part of the local " bounce music" scene. The label's young rappers, including Juvenile, B.G., and Turk, worked hard to deliver hits, but inner turmoil almost derailed Cash Money's success. The breakout success of Lil Wayne, who became the label's biggest star and even served as its president for a time, helped Cash Money survive during a difficult decade. Today stars like Drake and Nicki Minaj are helping to make Cash Money Records a household name in the hip-hop world.

Welcome to The Periodic Table of Hip Hop. Instead of hydrogen to helium, here you'll find James Brown to Kanye West - 94 artists that have defined Hip Hop arranged following the logic of The Periodic Table of Elements. MCs, DJs, rappers and producers are the elements here, and this expert guide orders them to reveal their contrasts and connections, along with key movements and moments in the history of this music genre. Includes: James Brown, P-Funk, Kool Herc, Melle Mel, Sugarhill Records, Fab Five Freddy, Whodini, Run DMC, Rick Rubin, LL Cool J, Kanye West and Jay Z and many, many more...

An insightful new resource that looks at the rise of American hip hop as a series of distinct regional events, with essays covering the growth of hip hop culture in specific cities across the nation. Thoroughly researched, thoroughly in tune with the culture, Hip Hop in America: A Regional Guide profiles two dozen specific hip hop scenes across the United States, showing how each place shaped a singular identity. Through its unique geographic perspective, it captures the astonishing diversity of a genre that has captivated the nation and the world. In two volumes organized by broad regions (East Coast, West Coast and Midwest and the Dirty South), Hip Hop in America spans the complete history of rap—from its 1970s origins to the rap battles between Queens and the Bronx in the 1980s, from the well-publicized East Coast vs. West Coast conflicts in the 1990s to the rise of the Midwest and South over the past ten years. Each essay showcases the history of the local scene, including the MCs, DJs, b-boys and b-girls, label owners, hip hop clubs, and radio shows that have created distinct styles of hip hop culture.

In its 114th year, Billboard remains the world's premier weekly music publication and a diverse digital, events, brand, content and data licensing platform. Billboard publishes the most trusted charts and offers unrivaled reporting about the latest music, video, gaming, media, digital and mobile entertainment issues and trends.

During the early 1990s, successful music producer Jermaine Dupri started So So Def Records. The Atlanta-based label began at a time when Southern hip-hop music was just beginning to get a lot of attention. Dupri signed distribution deals with much-larger record companies like Columbia and Arista. This allowed him to focus on what he did best: finding talented unknown artists and producing hit music. Some of So So Def's biggest stars included Da Brat, Lil Bow Wow, and Jagged Edge. Today So So Def Records is completely independent, and Jermaine Dupri is working hard to introduce a new generation of hip-hop stars.

Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists is more popular than racism! Hip hop is huge, and it's time someone wrote it all down. And got it all right. With over 25 aggregate years of interviews, and virtually every hip hop single, remix and album ever recorded at their disposal, the highly respected Ego Trip staff are the ones to do it. The Book of Rap Lists runs the gamut of hip hop information. This is an exhaustive, indispensable and completely irreverent bible of true hip hip knowledge.