Kathy Iandoli

Trap Kitchen is back with a nod to their Jamaican heritage, fusing Caribbean cuisine with their signature Trap Kitchen sensibilities and flavors. Trap Kitchen: Wah Gwan? Jamaican Cookbook will combine the soul of Trap Kitchen with the flavors of Jamaican cuisine. And just like last time, the cookbook will take another deep dive into the journey of Trap Kitchen's growth since they first made their mark in the literary world. From a business that started selling plates through their living room window via Instagram ads to now having multiple food trucks, a brick and mortar store, and numerous cookbooks With 50 recipes and hundreds of years of history and culture, Wah Gwan? (the universal greeting in Jamaica), takes us on a tour through the island. The recipes include both innovative meals made with a twist on traditional dishes, such as Goat Head Soup, Oxtail, Ackee & Saltfish, and Jerk Chicken, as well as traditional Jamaican favorites. As noted by Time Out on their 2018 best-of cookbooks list, the unlikely chef duo just "make food fun," and this time their cuisines tell a whole new story, which is innovative and explorative through the island of Jamaica.

Create your own blueprint for creativity in the pages of this journal pulsing with the style and flavor of hip-hop's beats, rhymes, and life--designed by an award-winning music journalist, writing professor, and media coach. The classic feel of your composition notebook, upscaled to align with your luxe and literary aspirations: Get Your Mind Write is a free-flowing, hip-hop-nuanced journal with room for writing casual notes and beginning your own literary masterpieces. Along with light-hearted prompts and listicles, Get Your Mind Write also features prompts inspiring you to make art while listening to your favorite tracks and others inviting you to write pieces using as many of the words printed on the page as possible. And as hip-hop celebrates fifty years, Iandoli invites serious examination of its ethos, with prompts like, "In what ways has the 'hustle harder' mantra supported your growth? In what ways has it held you back, or proven to be an obstacle more than a resource?" Drawing on her expertise media coaching up-and-coming musicians, Iandoli offers ways to dig deep and mine the emotional and mental depths that give rise to great art--and strong bars. Get Your Mind Write places the power of the pen in the writer's hands--a tool for personal growth and deeper self-understanding that helps you channel your love of the music and culture into your own lyrics.

FOR FANS OF WISE GUY & GOMORRAH -THE KING OF NEW YORK is the story of how one gangster makes it his life goal (and obsession) to dominate across all affiliations of organized crime to achieve the most desired title: The King Of New York. For nearly 50 years, the mafia has existed in the underbelly of New York City, where the heart of organized crime originated. For Jimmy Bianco, the mafia is a way of life. However, young Jimmy inherits both an honor and a duty that he didn't sign up for, when both his father and his grandfather are simultaneously murdered, leaving Jimmy as the heir, or in mafia speak, the Don. While Jimmy is no stranger to navigating his Brooklyn streets, he's clueless on how to move like a Don, make money like a Don, and kill like a Don. He learns the latter of the lessons when his uncle is released from prison, and is hoping to dominate New York City as a new kind of drug dealing kingpin, annihilating everyone in his way, including his nephew. The only way for Jimmy to fight back is to align with some of the most nefarious crime families and gangs, securing a top alliance with the notorious Black Mafia Family. The mafia calls it the Don, the streets call it all city, but for Jimmy Bianco his mission is clear: to become the King of New York. The King of New York is an action packed hybrid graphic novel, including elements of both fantasy and true crime, a must read for anyone fascinated by the ins and outs of the mafia or those looking for an action packed animated read.

In a definitive and “excellent homage to a star who left this planet too soon” (Questlove), the life, career, tragic death, and evolution of Aaliyah into a music legend are explored—now updated with new material featuring in-depth research and exclusive interviews. By twenty-two years old, Aaliyah had already accomplished a staggering amount: hit records, acclaimed acting roles, and fame that was just about to cross over into superstardom. Like her song, she was already “more than a woman” but her shocking death in a plane crash prevented her from fully growing into one. Now, two decades later, the full story of Aaliyah’s life and cultural impact is finally and lovingly revealed. Baby Girl features never-before-told stories, including studio anecdotes, personal tales, and eyewitness accounts on the events leading up to her untimely passing. Her enduring influence on today’s artists—such as Rihanna, Drake, Normani, and many more—is also celebrated, providing Aaliyah’s discography a cultural critique that is long overdue. “There’s no better way to pay your respect to R&B’s true angel than to lose yourself in the pages” (Kim Osorio, journalist and author of Straight from the Source) of this “dazzling biography” (Publishers Weekly) that is as unforgettable as its subject. This book was written without the participation of Aaliyah’s family/estate.

A stunningly illustrated oracle deck featuring 52 of hip-hop's most influential queens (from Lauryn Hill to Megan Thee Stallion) serving as compass points for spiritual growth and portals to guidance and meditation--from the author of God Save the Queens: The Essential History of Women in Hip-Hop. Women have been the backbone of hip-hop since its earliest inception. Along with perseverance and creativity, they possess a spiritual and metaphysical presence. These female creators have a profound potency that makes them the perfect symbols for an oracle deck to help you address a question or set your intention for the day. The fifty-two artists included--from MC Lyte, Salt-N-Pepa, Queen Latifah, and Lil' Kim to Beyonc , Missy Elliott, Cardi B, and Nicki Minaj--are hip-hop's oracles, now immortalized from tape deck to card deck. Veteran music journalist and certified oracle reader Kathy Iandoli matched each queen with an appropriate symbol, based on her decades of experience interviewing (and befriending) iconic artists, past and present. Rendered in the bold, colorful, pop art-style portraiture of artist Monica Ahanonu on sturdy, oversized cards with rounded corners, these DJs, MCs, and singers will guide you the same way they've blazed trails from the underground to the mainstream since day one.

The definitive biography of Aaliyah—the talented R&B singer and artist whose tragic death at only twenty-two years old shocked the entertainment world and solidified her as an unforgettable music legend, featuring new in-depth research and exclusive interviews. By twenty-two years old, Aaliyah had already accomplished a staggering amount: hit records, acclaimed acting roles, and fame that was just about to cross over into superstardom. Like her song, she was already “more than a woman” but her shocking death in a plane crash prevented her from fully growing into one. Now, two decades later, the full story of Aaliyah’s life and cultural impact is finally and lovingly explored. Baby Girl features never-before-told stories, including studio anecdotes, personal tales, and eyewitness accounts on the events leading up to her untimely passing. Her enduring influence on today’s artists—such as Rihanna, Drake, Lana del Rey, and many more—is also revealed, providing Aaliyah’s discography a cultural critique that is long overdue. Eye-opening, moving, and as unforgettable as its subject, Baby Girl is a necessary read for anyone who has been touched by Aaliyah’s music and story. This book was written without the participation of Aaliyah’s family/estate.

An NPR Best Book of the Year"Without God Save the Queens, it is possible that the contributions of dozens of important female hip-hop artists who have sold tens of millions of albums, starred in monumental films, and influenced the direction of the culture would continue to go unrecognized." —AllHipHop.comCan’t Stop Won’t Stop meets Girls to the Front in this essential and long overdue history of hip-hop’s female pioneers and its enduring stars. Every history of hip-hop previously published, from Jeff Chang’s Can’t Stop Won’t Stop to Shea Serrano’s The Rap Yearbook, focuses primarily on men, glaringly omitting a thorough and respectful examination of the presence and contribution of the genre’s female artists. For far too long, women in hip-hop have been relegated to the shadows, viewed as the designated “First Lady” thrown a contract, a pawn in some beef, or even worse. But as Kathy Iandoli makes clear, the reality is very different. Today, hip-hop is dominated by successful women such as Cardi B and Nicki Minaj, yet there are scores of female artists whose influence continues to resonate. God Save the Queens pays tribute to the women of hip-hop—from the early work of Roxanne Shante, to hitmakers like Queen Latifah and Missy Elliot, to the superstars of today. Exploring issues of gender, money, sexuality, violence, body image, feuds, objectification and more, God Save the Queens is an important and monumental work of music journalism that at last gives these influential female artists the respect they have long deserved.