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March 11, 2024

A Q&A with David Menconi, editor of American Music: New Roots a New Series from UNC Press

We are delighted to announce the launch of a new book series, American Music: New Roots. Edited by highly regarded journalist, music critic, and author David Menconi, the series will feature books that expand and challenge the way we think about American roots music genres, traditions, scenes, performers, and their ever-expanding contributions. Books in the series will not only bring new… Continue Reading A Q&A with David Menconi, editor of American Music: New Roots a New Series from UNC Press

Categories Music/UNC Press News
January 24, 2024

Archiving Birmingham Jazz: A Reader’s Guide to the Southern Music Research Center 

The following is a guest post by Burgin Mathews, author of Magic City: How the Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped the Sound of America which is now available wherever books are sold. For much of the twentieth century, the city of Birmingham, Alabama, was home to one of American music’s most essential unsung communities, a thriving network of musicians whose lives… Continue Reading Archiving Birmingham Jazz: A Reader’s Guide to the Southern Music Research Center 

Categories Guest Bloggers/Music
December 11, 2023

Beginnings: An Excerpt From “Magic City”

The following is an excerpt from Magic City: How the Birmingham Jazz Tradition Shaped the Sound of America by Burgin Mathews, available now wherever books are sold. Magic City is the story of one of American music’s essential unsung places: Birmingham, Alabama, birthplace of a distinctive and influential jazz heritage. Blending deep archival research and original interviews with living elders of… Continue Reading Beginnings: An Excerpt From “Magic City”

Categories Excerpts/Music
November 28, 2023

New Books This Week

We’ve arrived at another New Books Tuesday! Check out these two titles which are now available wherever books are sold. As always you can browse everything new this month on our Hot Off the Press page or sign up for our monthly e-news to get the list of new books delivered right to your inbox every month. Save 30% on… Continue Reading New Books This Week

Categories African American Studies/Music/Southern Studies
October 19, 2023

Q&A with David Menconi author of “Oh, Didn’t They Ramble”

The following is a Q&A with David Menconi, whose second book with UNC PRESS Oh, Didn’t They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation of American Roots Music is available now wherever books are sold. Oh, Didn’t They Ramble is the definitive history of Rounder Records, drawing on previously untapped archives and extensive interviews with artists, Rounder staff, and founders Ken… Continue Reading Q&A with David Menconi author of “Oh, Didn’t They Ramble”

Categories Guest Bloggers/Music
September 28, 2023

Upcoming Events for HIGH BIAS: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape by Marc Masters

Hear Marc Masters discuss his new book HIGH BIAS: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape (on sale 10/3/23; Kirkus Reviews calls it “a thoroughly enjoyable romp”) starting this weekend. Marc will be joined by writers, journalists, and musicians for most of the events below. SATURDAY SEPT 30, 1pm – LOS ANGELES CA 2220 Arts, 2220 Beverly Blvd, in conversation… Continue Reading Upcoming Events for HIGH BIAS: The Distorted History of the Cassette Tape by Marc Masters

Categories Music/UNC Press News
August 15, 2023

How to write a book: The timeline

Thanks to David Menconi for allowing us to reblog the following post outlining the timeline for writing his forthcoming book Oh, Didn’t They Ramble: Rounder Records and the Transformation of American Roots Music. This post originally appeared on his blog, Losering Books. David is the 2019 North Carolina Piedmont Laureate and was a staff writer at the Raleigh News &… Continue Reading How to write a book: The timeline

Categories Guest Bloggers/Music
June 7, 2023

Join the NC Reads Statewide Book Club and Read “Step It Up and Go” by David Menconi

Step It Up & Go: The Story of North Carolina Popular Music, from Blind Boy Fuller and Doc Watson to Nina Simone and Superchunk by David Menconi has been selected as the June bookclub selection for North Carolina Reads: North Carolina Humanities’ statewide book club. The NC Reads bookclub is free and has been featuring books from February through June, that… Continue Reading Join the NC Reads Statewide Book Club and Read “Step It Up and Go” by David Menconi

Categories Music/North Carolina/UNC Press News
June 2, 2023

Becoming the Future of Rock and Roll

The following is an excerpt of The Future of Rock and Roll: 97X WOXY and the Fight for True Independence by Robin James, which is available wherever books are sold. Becoming the Future of Rock and Roll 1981-1989 Between 1988 and 2010, “The Future of Rock and Roll” was 97X’s “liner” or recorded station ID. Broadcast on air and printed… Continue Reading Becoming the Future of Rock and Roll

Categories Excerpts/Music
August 2, 2022

“Chronicling Stankonia” by Regina Bradley: Now Available as an Audiobook

Chronicling Stankonia: The Rise of the Hip-Hop South by Regina N. Bradley, a critically acclaimed bestselling UNC Press title, is now available as an audiobook read by Bradley via Libro.fm, Audible, and Kobo. Praise for Chronicling Stankonia: This treatise from leading Southern hip-hop scholar Regina N. Bradley is a revelatory collection of essays—part literary criticism, part sonic analysis, part personal… Continue Reading “Chronicling Stankonia” by Regina Bradley: Now Available as an Audiobook

Categories African American Studies/Audiobooks/Music/UNC Press News
June 23, 2022

New in Paperback for Spring 2022

The following titles are all newly available in paperback from your favorite bookseller. And, if purchasing direct from UNC Press, take 40% off during our 100th Anniversary Sale using promo code 01DAH40 at checkout, and ground shipping is free on U.S. orders that are $75+ (also good on any print book, as well as preorders; a few restrictions apply). Stone… Continue Reading New in Paperback for Spring 2022

Categories African American History/African American Studies/Civil Rights/Cooking / Food/Latin American & Caribbean Studies/Latin American/Caribbean Hist./Latino Studies/Law / Legal History/Music/Nature/North Carolina/UNC Press News
March 29, 2022

Reciprocity Runs in Riddims

The following is a guest blog post by Larisa Kingston Mann, author of Rude Citizenship: Jamaican Popular Music, Copyright, and the Reverberations of Colonial Power. In this deep dive into the Jamaican music world filled with the voices of creators, producers, and consumers, Larisa Kingston Mann—DJ, media law expert, and ethnographer—identifies how a culture of collaboration lies at the heart… Continue Reading Reciprocity Runs in Riddims

Categories Guest Bloggers/Latin American & Caribbean Studies/Law / Legal History/Music
March 9, 2022

Hot Off The Press: March 2022

We’re publishing some great books this month! Read below to learn more about these exceptional titles. Don’t forget to enter code 01DAH40 at checkout for some savings! You can save 40% on ALL UNC Press print books and if your order totals $75 or more, the shipping is FREE! CITIZENS AND RULERS OF THE WORLD: THE AMERICAN CHILD AND THE… Continue Reading Hot Off The Press: March 2022

Categories African American Studies/American Studies/Gender Studies/Health / Medicine/Latin American & Caribbean Studies/Law / Legal History/Music/Political Science/UNC Press News
February 22, 2022

Black History Month 2022 Reading List: Biographies

In celebration of Black History Month, we’ve chosen to publish a new reading list every week featuring only Black authors. The first reading list covered Black Resistance, the second covered the Black American experience and this week’s reading list centers biographies; telling the stories of a few vastly different lives lived under the Black identity umbrella. As mentioned in the… Continue Reading Black History Month 2022 Reading List: Biographies

Categories African American Studies/American Studies/Appalachian Studies/Biography / Autobiography/Creative Nonfiction/Gender Studies/LGBT Studies/Literature/Music/North Carolina/Political Science/Reading Lists/Sociology/Women's Studies
February 8, 2022

Black History Month 2022 Reading List: Black Resistance

As you may already now, February is Black History Month. The history of black people should be celebrated at all times, but in February, we shine an extra special light on it. Black History Month began as Negro History Week in February 1926, created by historian Carter G. Woodson. In 1976, the celebration was expanded to a month. We’ll be… Continue Reading Black History Month 2022 Reading List: Black Resistance

Categories Africa & African Diaspora/African American History/African American Studies/American Studies/Education/Environmental Studies/Gender Studies/History/Literature/Music/Political Science/Reading Lists/Southern Studies/Women's Studies
January 11, 2022

Chronicling Stankonia: The Mountaintop Ain’t Flat

To celebrate Regina Bradley’s Chronicling Stankonia being featured on Blackfeminisms.com’s Academic Books by and About Black Women – 2021 Edition list, we’ve decided to share an excerpt from the book. This vibrant book pulses with the beats of a new American South, probing the ways music, literature, and film have remixed southern identities for a post–civil rights generation. For scholar… Continue Reading Chronicling Stankonia: The Mountaintop Ain’t Flat

Categories African American Studies/American Studies/Excerpts/Literature/Music
December 12, 2021

Staff Picks: 2021 UNC Press Holiday Gift Guide

We hope you’ve got your hot chocolate and eggnog ready for this winter season! Today we wanted to share some holiday gift recommendations from our staff. Don’t forget, we’re having a Holiday Sale too! Save 40% on any of these great stocking stuffers and all of our other UNC Press print books. You’ll also receive free shipping on orders of… Continue Reading Staff Picks: 2021 UNC Press Holiday Gift Guide

Categories African American Studies/Appalachian Studies/Biography / Autobiography/Biology/Birds & Birding/British History/Civil War/Cooking / Food/Creative Nonfiction/Environmental Studies/Gardening/History/Literature/Military History/Music/Nature/North Carolina/Political Science/Sports/Travel/UNC Press News
August 12, 2021

The Center for the Study of Southern Culture SouthTalks series featuring B. Brian Foster, author of I Don’t Like the Blues: Race, Place, and the Backbeat of Black Life, and filmmaker Zaire Love

In April, The Center for the Study of Southern Culture hosted a talk between B. Brian Foster, author of I Don’t Like The Blues: Race, Black and Backbeat of Black Life, and award-winning filmmaker Zaire Love. Watch as they discuss the collaborative visual they created for Foster’s book, the many sides of black identity in Mississippi, the escapism most black art forms… Continue Reading The Center for the Study of Southern Culture SouthTalks series featuring B. Brian Foster, author of I Don’t Like the Blues: Race, Place, and the Backbeat of Black Life, and filmmaker Zaire Love

Categories African American Studies/Music/Sociology
June 28, 2021

Princess Noire: We Knew She Was a Genius

With a few more days left to celebrate Black Music Month, we chose to post this excerpt from Nadine Cohodas’ Princess Noire: The Tumultuous Reign of Nina Simone. This book and a few other titles were featured on a recommended reading list commemorating some of the incredible things black people have brought to music as a whole. John Irvin sang… Continue Reading Princess Noire: We Knew She Was a Genius

Categories African American Studies/Biography / Autobiography/Music
June 24, 2021

Author B. Brian Foster in Conversation with Author William Ferris, Hosted by Square Books

In late January, Oxford, MS-based indie bookstore Square Books hosted a virtual conversation between B. Brian Foster, author of I Don’t Like The Blues: Race, Black and Backbeat of Black Life, and William Ferris, author of Give My Poor Heart Ease: Voices of the Mississippi Blues. Watch as Foster and Ferris discuss a history of black people’s involvement in sociology,… Continue Reading Author B. Brian Foster in Conversation with Author William Ferris, Hosted by Square Books

Categories African American Studies/Anthropology/Music/Sociology/Southern Studies