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bella613 's review for:
Most Dope: The Extraordinary Life of Mac Miller
by Paul Cantor
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
sad
medium-paced
I liked this book a lot, and enjoyed listening to it. I have loved Mac Miller's music since high school but never really knew all that much about him as a person, especially in the early days of his career. I don't necessarily think this book educated me all that much, or made me a bigger fan than I was, but it was a great tribute and insight into the life of a wonderful yet troubled artist.
There are a few things that keep me from rating it 5 stars: First, the author did not have a personal relationship with Malcolm. I'm glad he immediately addressed the fact that the book was written outside permission or help from any family or the estate, but it does make parts of the book seem less credible and more like gathered research than real stories. I think if this had been written along with direct help from someone who knew him, it would have been a five star read (yes there are many contributors who knew him but their role was more like interviewees)
Second, why do I feel like I learned more about Wiz Khalifa from this book than Mac Miller? Lol. I knew a decent amount of the the general facts about Miller before reading and knew little to none about Wiz, and I guess it seemed like there was a ton of focus on Wiz Khalifa even though he wasnt really a part of Malcolm's life at all. The third thing is mainly just that I would have liked to dive deep into Mac's life, and the focus was definitely his career. It's understandable that making music was his life for at least a period of time, but I like biographies because they can give me more than a journalism article can, and this book just didn't do that.
It was a very well organized book that held a lot of respect for the life Malcolm lived and the people he inspired (and continues to inspire). I did actually appreciate the history lesson on Pittsburgh and the set-up of hip-hop culture and white rappers. This seems to be a large complaint among other reviewers, but I think it's valid to make Mac's being a white rapper a big part of the book because it's a huge part of his story, and white influence coming into mainstream hip hop was a huge deal. I agree that it can feel a little obvious and repetitive sometimes, but it's a controversial topic that probably doesn't get enough honest discussion. Being a white rapper made it hard to be taken seriously, and being white gives an established rapper a lot of priveleges. It'll come up a lot in life, so it comes up a lot in the book.
Would recommend this to anyone who is a fan, anyone into hip hop culture, anyone who appreciates biographies.
There are a few things that keep me from rating it 5 stars: First, the author did not have a personal relationship with Malcolm. I'm glad he immediately addressed the fact that the book was written outside permission or help from any family or the estate, but it does make parts of the book seem less credible and more like gathered research than real stories. I think if this had been written along with direct help from someone who knew him, it would have been a five star read (yes there are many contributors who knew him but their role was more like interviewees)
Second, why do I feel like I learned more about Wiz Khalifa from this book than Mac Miller? Lol. I knew a decent amount of the the general facts about Miller before reading and knew little to none about Wiz, and I guess it seemed like there was a ton of focus on Wiz Khalifa even though he wasnt really a part of Malcolm's life at all. The third thing is mainly just that I would have liked to dive deep into Mac's life, and the focus was definitely his career. It's understandable that making music was his life for at least a period of time, but I like biographies because they can give me more than a journalism article can, and this book just didn't do that.
It was a very well organized book that held a lot of respect for the life Malcolm lived and the people he inspired (and continues to inspire). I did actually appreciate the history lesson on Pittsburgh and the set-up of hip-hop culture and white rappers. This seems to be a large complaint among other reviewers, but I think it's valid to make Mac's being a white rapper a big part of the book because it's a huge part of his story, and white influence coming into mainstream hip hop was a huge deal. I agree that it can feel a little obvious and repetitive sometimes, but it's a controversial topic that probably doesn't get enough honest discussion. Being a white rapper made it hard to be taken seriously, and being white gives an established rapper a lot of priveleges. It'll come up a lot in life, so it comes up a lot in the book.
Would recommend this to anyone who is a fan, anyone into hip hop culture, anyone who appreciates biographies.
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Infidelity, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Car accident, Alcohol
Moderate: Child death, Rape, Murder