Nominated for a spoken-word Grammy, this book combines Questlove's deep musical expertise with his curiosity about history, examining America over the past 50 years. Focusing on the years 1971 to the present, he finds the hidden connections in the American tapestry - whether investigating how the blaxploitation era reshaped Black identity or considering the way disco took an assembly-line approach to Black genius. These critical inquiries are complemented by his own memories as a music fan and the way his appetite for pop culture taught him about America. This is a cultural history of the last half century and an intimate conversation with one of music's most influential and original voices - a singular look at the makings of contemporary America. (See chapter list below.)