Gerrick Kennedy Book order (chronological)

An up-close and intimate journey through Whitney Houston's incredible ascent to stardom and her tragic fall from graceDidn’t We Almost Have It All is a portrait of the woman behind one of the most famous voices in the world; a performer whose struggles and insecurities with race, sexuality, addiction, identity, abuse, faith, and class ultimately contributed to a heartbreaking demise that was devastating and inevitable in equal measure. Whitney Houston's story is a cautionary tale about the perils of fame and addiction, but it's also a story rife with emotions that are universal to the human experience. She lived much of her life trying to please others—her parents, her family, her mentor Clive Davis, the public—all people who made her a prisoner to her successes and failures in the last decade of her life. This groundbreaking new biography is centered around firsthand reporting that weaves together the story of a rising star and, for the first time, digs into the dark underbelly of the abuse, addiction, and anxiety that caused Houston's very public fall from grace and ultimately her death.

Eazy-E, Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, MC Ren, and DJ Yella transformed hip-hop by forming N.W.A in 1986, bringing gangsta rap to the forefront on the West Coast. Their hard-core image and bombastic sound, paired with lyrics that were poetic, lascivious, and socially conscious, reflected the harsh realities of life in Compton, California—a place rife with poverty, drugs, and gangs. N.W.A's raw storytelling starkly contrasted the sanitized images of middle-class America portrayed on television. For the group, music was about authenticity and self-expression, not about niceties. Through extensive interviews and research, Los Angeles Times music reporter Gerrick D. Kennedy provides an in-depth look at N.W.A's early days, the controversies they faced, and their rise to multiplatinum fame. Kennedy explores pivotal moments, such as Ice Cube's departure to pursue a solo career after their debut album's success, the establishment of Ruthless Records, confrontations with the FBI over their provocative lyrics, and Dr. Dre's launch of Death Row Records. He also delves into the group's influence on the 1992 LA riots and Eazy-E's battle with AIDS. This compelling work of music journalism captures a defining era in rap, highlighting how N.W.A made the genre social, provocative, and unapologetically gangsta, demanding attention and respect.