Synopses & Reviews
Son of the City goes behind the scenes of the Golden Age of Hip Hop with esteemed producer and music industry veteran, Dante Ross, one of the top-25 greatest A&Rs as named by
Complex Magazine. Ross pulls no punches as he details his time growing up on the pre-gentrification Lower East Side as the child of political activists, his devotion to punk rock, and his eventual discovery of a brand new art form, which landed him at Tommy Boy Records, where he signed and handled the careers of such artists as De La Soul, Queen Latifah, and Digital Underground. Ross would go on on to work for Elektra records, where he signed Brand Nubian, Grand Puba, Pete Rock & C.L Smooth, KMD, Busta Rhymes, and Ol' Dirty Bastard. He is currently a SVP of A&R at Warner Music Group where he recently helped unearth Macklemore to the world.
As a producer, Ross has produced records for artists such as 3rd Bass, Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Run-DMC, Santana, Everlast (working on both the multi-platinum album Whitey Ford Sings The Blues and the gold follow-up, Eat At Whitey's), plus many others. Ross earned a Grammy in 1998 for his production work on Carlos Santana's Supernatural. Ross' production work has also appeared on Eminem's 8 Mile soundtrack, where he produced and co-wrote two songs that featured Macy Grey and Young Z. Ross has worked with artists as diverse as Korn, Incubus, Mobb Deep, Ice Cube, ODB, as well as a plethora of others.
Review
"Dante Ross is one of the most important and consistent executives in all of music. I have no hesitation in saying he is the gold standard in hip-hop A&R. All of his foundational signees affected my personal creative direction, which meant that they affected my life. I can't thank him enough for posting those numbers on the boards. But on top of everything else, he is the last of a dying breed — a no-nonsense cool-ass New Yorker who has always walked it like he's talked it. He's a true sage. Thank you, Dante!" Quest Love
Review
"The records Dante Ross made both as an A&R man at Elektra and as a member of the SD50's production crew are some of the most treasured rap music of the early 90's. They influenced me enormously. Like the author himself, Son of the City is a passionate, entertaining, no bullshit inside look at how the New York hip-hop scene ran in that golden era." Mark Ronson
Review
"A New Yorker by nature and music executive by hard work, Dante Ross's book is a journey both through Big Apple history and the evolution of hip-hop, a story filled with love, money and occasional fisticuffs." Nelson George, author of Hip Hop America
Review
"In Son of the City, Dante Ross captures what it was like to have a front-row seat for nearly 3 decades of hip-hop history as it was being made in real-time. Dante is the Ralph Bass of hip-hop..." Chuck D
Review
"Dante Ross has seen and done it all. He's been an icon of urban cool, a pop star-maker, and the confidante of rap and rock heroes and political radicals, style moguls, and gang-bangers. He has ridden shotgun down the mainline of our generation and lived to tell about it. In Son of the City, he does it with lyricism, grace, and wisdom." Jeff Chang, author of Who We Be: The Colorization of America and Can't Stop Won't Stop: A History of the Hip-Hop Generation
Review
"Dante Ross can tell the history of hip-hop culture and business from start to finish because he lived it. His list of achievements is mind-boggling. Son of the City is the story of a tough-talking gentle soul who put his career and heart on the line for the sake of the real shit. " Dan Charnas, author of Dilla Time: The Life and Afterlife of J Dilla, The Hip-Hop Producer Who Reinvented Rhythm
Review
"Dante Ross was one of the first people to believe in me. I thank him endlessly for taking a chance on a young woman and her dream way back when. Son of the City is an exciting tale of one of hip-hop's greatest A&R people and his journey." Queen Latifah
Review
"Dante Ross's presence is ubiquitous throughout the evolution of this culture. He's played such an integral role in realizing so many of the most iconic and meaningful moments. I consider him to be the Forest Gump of hip-hop." Black Thought
Review
"The big bro Dante Ross believed in me from day one. When my group Leaders of The New School broke up, Dante opened the doors for me to pursue my solo career. The rest is history. In reading Son of the City, I got to stroll down memory lane and revisit this defining moment in my life and career." Busta Rhymes
Review
"Dante grew up in and around so much emergent culture in NYC, at a time when cultural exchange was truly at its peak. He took what he saw and used it as inspiration for a prolific career in music and beyond. Son of the City provides a birds eye view of it all." Mike D, Beastie Boys
About the Author
Dante Ross is an American music industry executive, A&R man and esteemed record producer. Complex Magazine named Ross one of the top 25 greatest A&RS in Hip Hop history. Ross started his A&R career at Tommy Boy records where he signed and handled the careers of such artists as De La Soul, Queen Latifah, and Digital Underground. Mr. Ross's contributions have made him part of the lexicon of popular culture. He lives in New York City.