RAP CAPITAL

A culture reporter examines the rap landscape of Atlanta, which has birthed “some of the most impactful, commercially successful and influential music of the last thirty-plus years.”

Hip-hop fame can be fleeting and inexplicable, and this oddly structured tale reflects that reality, following sensations that didn’t pan out and skipping over stars that made it big. “In human terms and in musical ones,” writes New York Times reporter Coscarelli, “Atlanta rap represents the most consequential musical ecosystem of this century so far.” However, he quickly switches from such broad declarations, bouncing quickly past Atlanta hip-hop legends like Outkast, T.I., and TLC as well as music executives like L.A. Reid and Jermaine Dupri. The author focuses on the beginnings of the influential Quality Control label, which launched the careers of current stars Migos, Lil Yachty, and, most importantly, Lil Baby. It’s a fascinating story about the struggles of hip-hop authenticity, and Coscarelli is a decent storyteller—though he leans more on interviews with Lil Baby’s mother than with the rapper himself, and his tumultuous life and artistic decisions could bear deeper consideration. Though Baby’s hit “The Bigger Picture,” inspired by the police murder of George Floyd, became incredibly influential, especially after its stunning performance at the 2021 Grammy Awards, Coscarelli only spends a short section discussing it. “I wanted to use a specific situation that would give people an understanding of where I come from,” he quotes the rapper, with little more explanation. That focus problem continues throughout much of the text, and the author offers overlong discussions of Baby’s less successful friend Lil Marlo, who was shot and killed in 2020, and the stalled career of one-time teenage phenom Lil Reek. It’s also odd that Coscarelli gives short shrift to the massively successful Lil Nas X, who also hails from the city. Lil Baby’s gripping story could’ve carried the narrative, but the author’s intellectual bait and switch drags it down.

An occasionally enlightening but uneven history of Atlanta’s hip-hop scene and influence.