Read A Book: J Cole, Ice Cube & Other MCs Share Their Favorite Literary Works
Hip-hop's love affair with the literary arts is well documented, from Nas's voracious reading during his teenage years to Tupac's life-long appreciation of poetry and Shakespearian drama. Now, GQ has asked some of today's most well-established MCs to share their must-read lists of beloved books. A$AP Rocky, J Cole, Ice Cube, Childish Gambino and more all participated in the story, which featured plenty of wordy surprises.
J Cole:
Eye Of The Hurricane by Rubin Carter. I never saw the movie with Denzel Washington, but the book [on which it is based] is incredible. It's about a boxer who is a hometown hero in New Jersey because he went to juvie, then the army, made it big as a pro and then was wrongly accused of a triple murder. It's kind of inspiring - and it makes me think, 'Man, what have I really done?'
A$AP Rocky:
Ice Cube:
Quincy Jones' autobiography Q is very good. Because he's a master at music, he's one of our greatest composers and its good for him to have a book and tell the good ole days when he was with Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Sarah Vaughan and Ray Charles. The reason he got to work with so many people was because he was one of the few musicians around who could write out the arrangements. He was in everybody's session. He learned so much.
Childish Gambino:
Other MCs featured in GQ's piece include Azealia Banks, Kreayshawn, Trey Songz and more. Read the full literary roundup here.
