Synopses & Reviews
DESCRIPTION (longer copy)The decade from 1993 to 2003 was the period during which hip hop rose from an urban subculture to a multi-billion-dollar industry whose styles and sound have affected every aspect of worldwide popular culture. One magazine led the way in chronicling this hip-hop revolution: VIBE. Launched by Quincy Jones in 1993. VIBE soon became the fastest-growing music magazine in history. Envisioning a multicultural future that has since become a reality, VIBE ushered in a new kind of celebrity: stars who challenged showbiz conventions and spoke to issues of race and identity. Tupac Shakur in a straight jacket. Chaka Khan's luscious mouth. TLC in firemen's outfits (for an article in which a member of the group admitted to burning down her boyfriend's mansion). VIBE was the first magazine to profile future megastars like Snoop Doggy Dogg, Puff Daddy, Mary J. Blige. It embraced pop royalty like Michael Jackson, Prince, Britney Spears, and Destiny's Child. Likewise, movie stars like Will Smith, comedians like Chris Rock and Richard Pryor, and sports figures like Shaquille O'Neal have all come in for the VIBE treatment. Only in VIBE can such celebrity portraits run alongside a shot of a pimp carrying an alligator or a porn star clutching a teddy bear or a resident of Watts, L.A. just getting through the day. VX: Ten Years of VIBE Photography will include the most powerful images featured in the definitive chronicle of urban culture, as well as a selection of never-before-seen shots and outtakes.
Synopsis
The decade that has passed since Quincy Jones launched VIBE magazine in 1993 has marked hip hop's rise from an urban subculture to a multibillion-dollar industry whose styles and sound have affected every aspect of popular culture. Leading the way in chronicling this hip hop revolution, VIBE soon became the fastest-growing music magazine in history, shattering stereotypes with every issue. It was VIBE that first profiled future megastars like Snoop Doggy Dogg and Puff Daddy; VIBE that shocked readers with its image of Tupac Shakur in a straitjacket; VIBE that ushered in a new kind of celebrity: stars who challenged showbiz conventions and spoke to issues of race and identity. Now--timed to coincide with the magazine's 10th anniversary, including a traveling exhibition and a 10-city tour with live concert--comes VX, a comprehensive chronicle of urban culture that features the most powerful images to appear in VIBE, along with a selection of never-before-seen shots and outtakes. Showcasing the work of top photographers such as Albert Watson, Ellen von Unwerth, David LaChapelle, Dah Len, Sante D'Orazio, Dan Winters, Dana Lixenberg, Larry Sultan, and Christian Witkin, VX is the definitive photography book for the hip-hop generation.