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Here’s a draft of my nearly 10,000 word essay on the Twin Cities hip hop scene. It’s going to go into the Greenwood Guide to American Regional Hip-Hop, a collection of 24 essays that will, for the first time, bring an in-depth look at all of the hip hop scenes across the country in one book. Each essay is going to follow the same plan. First there’s a history of the scene and what makes it distinct. Second, there is a series of artist profiles. Finally, there is a section about the future of hip hop in that particular location. In addition to these three main sections, there will be a section to discuss 5 “Landmarks” of Twin Cities hip hop, which will be located throughout the essay.

The whole collection’s not coming out, though, for another year and a half and I’d like to get some feedback. I know there are things that I missed or omitted, either due to lack of knowledge or lack of space. Let me know what you like, what you don’t like, what I left out, what needs to be talked about more, anything you want. You can either use the “comments” section below each post, or email me at schel115 [at] umn.edu.

Thanks for reading and a big thanks to all the folks who helped me put this thing together.

peace

justin