Amazon.com ReviewDecoded is many things at once. At its core, Decoded is an eloquent and candid memoir detailing the story of a man who was born in a Brooklyn housing project, spent his teen years dealing drugs on the streets of Trenton, New Jersey, and grew up to be one of his generation’s most successful artists and businessmen. But Decoded is much more than a memoir: it is an intensely personal homage to hip-hop, as written by a man who so clearly adores the art form; it is a rare glimpse of the unexpectedly deep meanings behind the most recognizable rap lyrics of the last decade; and it is a truly moving collection of essays on topics ranging from Hurricane Katrina to the decline of the music industry. Unconventional type design, line drawings, and photographs visually emphasize the author’s message that rap is a form that transcends and defies easy categorization. There’s not much in the way of celebrity gossip here, but what we get, instead, is a gritty and enormously compelling look inside the cultural phenomenon of rap, from one of the men who contributed so much to its shape. --Juliet Disparte Jay-Z on DecodedWhen you're famous and say you're writing a book, people assume that it's an autobiography--I was born here, raised there, suffered this, loved that, lost it all, got it back, the end. But that's not what this is. I've never been a linear thinker, which is something you can see in my rhymes. They follow the jumpy logic of poetry and emotion, not the straight line of careful prose. My book is like that, too.Decoded is first and foremost, a book of rhymes, which is ironic because I don't actually write my rhymes--they come to me in my head and I record them. The book is packed with the stories from my life that are the foundation of my lyrics--stories about coming up in the streets of Brooklyn in the 80's and 90's, stories about becoming an artist and entrepreneur and discovering worlds that I never dreamed existed when I was a kid. But it always comes back to the rhymes. There's poetry in hip-hop lyrics--not just mine, but in the work of all the great hip-hop artists, from KRS-One and Rakim to Biggie and Pac to a hundred emcees on a hundred corners all over the world that you've never heard of. The magic of rap is in the way it can take the most specific experience, from individual lives in unlikely places, and turn them into art that can be embraced by the whole world. Decoded is a book about one of those specific lives--mine--and will show you how the things I've experienced and observed have made their way into the art I've created. It's also about how my work is sometimes not about my life at all, but about pushing the boundaries of what I can express through the poetry of rap--trying to use words to find fresh angles into emotions that we all share, which is the hidden mission in even the hardest hip-hop. Decoded is a book about some of my favorite songs--songs that I unpack and explain and surround with narratives about what inspired them--but behind the rhymes is the truest story of my life.Book DescriptionDecoded is a book like no other: a collection of lyrics and their meanings that together tell the story of a culture, an art form, a moment in history, and one of the most provocative and successful artists of our time.

Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers

Random House, Incorporated

Random House Canada Ltd

Random House AudioBooks

Random House LLC US

Virgin Books

One World

1st ed., New York, New York State, 2010

United States, United States of America

1st, First Edition, PS, 2010

First edition, London, 2010

Illustrated, 2010

NOV 2010

Decoded ... A Collection Of Lyrics And Their Meanings That Together Tell The Story Of A Culture, An Art Form, A Moment In History, And One Of The Most Provocative And Successful Artists Of Our Time--dust Jacket. Part 1. One Eye Open -- The Revolutionary T-shirt -- Public Service Announcement (the Black Album) -- American Dreamin' (american Gangster) -- Early This Morning (unreleased) -- Honor Among Predators -- Coming Of Age (reasonable Doubt) -- Coming Of Age (da Sequel) (vol. 2 ... Hard Knock Life) -- D'evils (reasonable Doubt) -- Negative Space -- 99 Problems (the Black Album) -- Ignorant Shit (american Gangster) -- Part 2. I Will Not Lose -- Portrait Of The Artist As A Young Star -- Most Kings (unreleased) -- Success (american Gangster) -- Renegade (the Blueprint) -- Can I Live? (reasonable Doubt) -- Balling And Falling -- Fallin' (american Gangster) -- Big Pimpin' (vol. 3 ... Life And Times Of S. Carter) -- Streets Is Watching (in My Lifetime, Vol. 1) -- Beat The System Before It Beats You -- Operation Corporate Takeover (mix Tape Freestyle) -- Moment Of Clarity (the Black Album) -- A Stern Discipline -- Breathe Easy (lyrical Exercise) (the Blueprint) -- My 1st Song (the Black Album) -- Part 3. Politics As Usual -- White America -- Young Gifted And Black (s. Carter Collection) -- Hell Yeah (pimp The System) (revolutionary But Gangsta) -- Ears Wide Open -- Beware (jay-z Remix) (beware) -- Blue Magic (american Gangster) -- Cautionary Tales -- This Life Forever (black Gangster) -- Meet The Parents (the Bluprint2: The Lift & The Curse) -- Where I'm From (in My Lifetime, Vol. 1) -- Funeral Parade -- Minority Report (kingdom Come) -- Dynasty (intro) (the Dynasty: Roc La Familia) -- My President Is Black (unreleased) -- Part 4. Come And Get Me -- The Voice In Your Head Is Right -- Regrets (reasonable Doubt) -- This Can't Be Life (the Dynasty: Roc La Familia) -- Soon You'll Understand (the Dynasty: Roc La Familia) -- Instant Karma -- Beach Chair (kingdom Come) -- Lucifer (the Black Album) -- Our Life -- December 4th (the Black Album) -- History (unreleased). Jay-z.

Decoded is a book like no other: a collection of lyrics and their meanings that together tell the story of a culture, an art form, a moment in history, and one of the most provocative and successful artists of our time. Praise for Decoded "Compelling . . . provocative, evocative . . . Part autobiography, part lavishly illustrated commentary on the author's own work, Decoded gives the reader a harrowing portrait of the rough worlds Jay-Z navigated in his youth, while at the same time deconstructing his lyrics."-Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times "One of a handful of books that just about any hip hop fan should own."-The New Yorker "Elegantly designed, incisively written . . . an impressive leap by a man who has never been known for small steps."-Los Angeles Times "A riveting exploration of Jay-Z's journey . . . So thoroughly engrossing, it reads like a good piece of cultural journalism."-The Boston Globe "Shawn Carter's most honest airing of the experiences he drew on to create the mythic figure of Jay-Z . . . The scenes he recounts along the way are fascinating."-Entertainment Weekly "Hip-hop's renaissance man drops a classic. . . . Heartfelt, passionate and slick."-Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

Decoded is a book like no a collection of lyrics and their meanings that together tell the story of a culture, an art form, a moment in history, and one of the most provocative and successful artists of our time.
Praise for Decoded
Compelling . . . provocative, evocative . . . Part autobiography, part lavishly illustrated commentary on the authors own work, Decoded gives the reader a harrowing portrait of the rough worlds Jay-Z navigated in his youth, while at the same time deconstructing his lyrics. Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times
One of a handful of books that just about any hip hop fan should own. The New Yorker
Elegantly designed, incisively written . . . an impressive leap by a man who has never been known for small steps. Los Angeles Times
A riveting exploration of Jay-Zs journey . . . So thoroughly engrossing, it reads like a good piece of cultural journalism. The Boston Globe
Shawn Carters most honest airing of the experiences he drew on to create the mythic figure of Jay-Z . . . The scenes he recounts along the way are fascinating. Entertainment Weekly
Hip-hops renaissance man drops a classic. . . . Heartfelt, passionate and slick. Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

The controversial hip-hop artist presents the story of his life and career through lyrics, images, and a personal narrative that also offers insight into his creative process.

2025-02-05