Triksta: Life and Death and New Orleans Rap [Hardcover]

I purchased this book thinking that I would be treated to an inside view of the New Orleans rap scene that I've spent the past 8 years or so absorbing myself in. Unfortunately, while Cohn apparently did interact with many "rappers", most of them seemed to be just as hopeless and unsuccessful as he was at doing anything important in rap. He makes little mention of the important roots of New Orleans rap--L.O.G., UNLV, P.N.C, and does his damnedest to downplay and discredit anyone who has made money off of rap out of New Orleans (i.e. Cash Money and No Limit). I did, however, enjoy reading about the conspiracy theories surrounding Brian "Baby" Williams (such as hiring hit men to kill enemies, financing the lable with drug sales, and scheming to rip off his own rappers).

To respond to the reviewer below me, it is true that this book makes a few too many factual errors for a non-fiction book. As the the below reviewer's comment that Cohn confused Eastover and English Turn, I do believe Brian Williams, or at least his brother, owns a house in English Turn. Mannie Fresh does for sure, so there is a possibility that either Baby himself owns another house there, or Cohn confused Baby with Slim or Mannie. Onto Cohn, though, I was EXTREMELY dismayed that this book does not contain ANY references, sources, or even credits in a designated section! Half of the reason I purchased this book was out of curiosity about how to gather information on this topic, and I hoped it would lead to other books, articles, or at least knowledgeable individuals who the author might have referenced outside of the text of the book itself. As for the cover, to which no further reference is made, there is little mention of Mardi Gras Indians except for a single group of them, and Cohn omits perhaps the most well-known gathering called "Mardi Gras under the Bridge" which takes place under a freeway on the intersection of Orleans & Claiborne avenues. There is at least one unforgivable blunder that I found. On page 19, Cohn erroneously states that there are eighteen wards in the "inner" city of New Orleans. In fact, the entire city only has 17 wards. I know this because this is something I have personally researched, and it's common knowledge for any voter and resident of the city (I am a life-long resident). Wikipedia has excellent information on the Wards of New Orleans, particularly the 9th Ward, for anyone who is interested. Speaking of the 9th Ward, Cohn states that it is commonly called "Psycho Ward". I have not been able to verify this, and I am a New Orleans East resident, which is part of the 9th Ward. "C.T.C", "the five-four", and "the mighty 9" are much more common nicknames to my knowledge, and he mentions none of these.

He also repeatedly complains that Bourbon street is only for tourists (frat boys and conventioneers, her says), which is almost entirely a complaint that I hear tourists themselves make, and is really not true. It's a pathos of frequent visitors and repeat-tourists that characterizes this possessive attitude-locals really don't have it-and is especially important in evaluating Cohn's qualifications to `claim' New Orleans. Cohn's desire to fit-in and feel like a native breaks down when his "I'm a local" snobbery reaches this point. And as a reviewer of this book pointed out, Cohn gives the impression that he is an expert (or has become one through his experiences) on New Orleans rap, but he shows no more knowledge on the topic than the typical New Orleans public high school student (being a graduate myself). But this doesn't really discredit him, because it's still a worthwhile read even if you're not trying to gain insider knowledge, and many readers will likely know little more about the genre than the fact that the names "Master P" and "Juvenile" are associated with it.

With all of that criticism out of the way, I disagree with the prior reviewer that this book was boring. It is written well and pretty compelling. There are some extremely funny parts in the book, particularly the phonetically written-out slang phrases that I have heard all of my life and got to picture this old British man saying. I can't speak for all readers on this, but I for one would very much like to meet Nik Cohn, because he shares the same obsession I do and articulates it so well. If anyone is curious about New Orleans and why it is so notorious for violent crimes, this book sheds light. While this isn't the informative, definitive manual on New Orleans Rap that I was hoping for, it is a good read.

When I first saw Triksta I was immediately drawn to it because of the Mardi Gras Indian on the cover, and the fact that the book was about New Orleans rap. Then, while flipping through a few pages, I noticed the names of some of the lesser known New Orleans rappers - Junie B stuck out the most. Because of this I was definitely impressed and was quite interested in reading Triksta.

While looking for a place to buy Triksta online, I ran into a book review that mentioned that Cohn had written a screenplay that Saturday Night Fever was based on - however, Cohn admitted that he made up most of the story. Because of that, I admittedly started reading Triksta with a negative preconceived notion of Nik Cohn being a fraud.

In the first 102 pages of Triksta, Cohn attempts to explain his fascinations with New Orleans, give us a history of hip hop, and give us a rough portrayal of the New Orleans rap scene. Unfortunately, this half of the book was simply a compilation of factual inaccuracies, exaggerations, and random accounts that are impossible to corroborate. Cohn's ridiculously inaccurate statements planted a seed of doubt deep into my consciousness from the outset.

The inaccuracies include, but are certainly not limited to:

* "...the house at English Turn, where Slim and Baby Williams had mansions...and all your neighbors were white." (pg 62) - in truth, Baby lives in Eastover not English Turn, and the two communities are completely and totally different. Eastover is a predominantly black, affluent community in New Orleans East and English Turn is an exclusive (not predominantly black) community in Algiers, on New Orleans' westbank, and the communities are every bit as different as the twenty-two miles that separate them.

* "Then came 'Get the Gat'....It was [Soulja Slim's] first big hit..." (pg 24) - "Get the Gat" was a big hit, but it was made by a rapper named Lil' Elt, not Soulja Slim.

With relatively basic errors like these, especially concerning some of the biggest New Orleans rap stars and songs, Cohn did little to sway my already negative opinion of him. In addition to those blunders, in the first half of Triksta, Cohn treated us to pages and pages of non-topical anecdotes. These stories included nine pages about the boxer, Willie Pastrano and another nine pages about a rapper named Lil' Mel, who by Cohn's own admission, "...none of the other rappers I came to know recognized his name." (pg 67). To put it mildly, halfway through the book, I was confused about what Triksta was about, and certainly wondering why the hell I purchased it in the first place.

One the 103rd page, Cohn finally seemed to get to the point - he finally started giving us accounts of his actual experiences with New Orleans rappers. At this point Triksta became a bit more interesting to me. Cohn told of how he progressed from a writer, writing a magazine article about bounce music, to a New Orleans rap music producer. Although his goal of hitting the big time with a New Orleans artist was essentially fruitless, it still was interesting to read about his experiences with local acts including his most extensive work with Choppa and Junie B.

Of course my interest was tempered by the fact that, based on his past, and his factual inaccuracies in this book, Nik Cohn may or may not have been embellishing much of what he said. My interest also was minimized by Cohn's exaggerated sense of place and worth in the New Orleans rap community. Although he insisted that he was simply an out of place white man fulfilling a fantasy, he seemed to feel that he knew what New Orleans rap was, wasn't, should and shouldn't be.

For the uinitiated, Triksta offers a welcome peek behind the touristy New Orleans into the gritty, real-life existence in the neighborhoods:

COMPELLING . . . Triksta gives a face and a voice to the people of New Orleans." - Deirdre Donahue, USA Today

"RICH . . . Poignant . . . Triksta is less about nostalgia for the past than engagement with the city's present (or what it had been until August), and how the rap-game players he meets there - to use hip-hop parlance - roll . . . He captures the game's street-level desperation [and] tells their stories in an energetic, empathetic shorthand [that is] infused with love and respect . . . A very good book." - Will Hermes, The New York Times Book Review

"EVOCATIVE. . . a rare glimpse inside an inscrutable American city and an inadvertent elegy to it . . . The story winds through the clubs, the parties, the backroom studios, offering a guided tour of the impoverished wards that would be hit hardest after Hurricane Katrina . . . Cohn is a venerable cultural witness, [and] he nails New Orleans, this strange outpost, a place like nowhere else on the planet." - Lynell George, Los Angeles Times Book Review

...but for those of us in the know (who actually were born and raised in New Orleans), Triksta is simply a fantasy book about a bored white man who wants to fulfill a fantasy of being in a black, ghetto clique.

http://exceptionallynormal.blogspot.com

I have never really cared very much either way for rap/hip-hop and its extensive musical family, plus my convention-linked visits to New Orleans always had been grim affairs, coloured by the usual treadmill around the Potemkin village-like tourist traps of the city. As a result, being given this book for Christmas instantly achieved high rank in my personal top ten of pointless presents. However, one quick perusal across the first page and I was hooked. The book involves the reader from the off and the author writes in a thoroughly heart-felt and engaging manner. The book chronicles the author's fascination for and obession with rap & hip-hop generally and New Orleans specifically, to a degree where the only logical progression was to involve and immerse himself on an exploratory journey both outwards into these two overlapping worlds as well as in inwards to confront and understand his own addictions. The author is well aware that he stands out like an altar boy at a Hell's Angels party, which only makes his lack of discomfort and natural enthusiasm all the more admirable, especially when you consider that he is doing this at an age where I, for one, would probably prefer to be tucked up in bed with a hot cup of cocoa. Where the book came into its own, at least for me, was its acute and painful observation of a slice of society that goes wholly unobserved and ignored, where life influences the music and, in a sadly ironic turn, music influences life. The author's attempt at least to chronicle and understand what is going on, both in a big picture kind of way, as well as on a direct and personal level, lifts his story above what would otherwise easily have been just another standard rock'n'roll chronicle. This book is a personal account and the author is critical where he needs to be, but he is never judgemental or condemnatory and the story is one of those rare ones that gives you the ability to see things a little bit different. My one criticism is that the book was a bit too short, but like a great party, you leave just at its peak and wanting for more. A highly enjoyable read, intelligent and observant, well worth your hard-earned. Thanks and take care.