The Five Percenters

With a cast of characters ranging from Malcolm X to 50 Cent, Knight’s compelling work is the first detailed account of the movement inextricably linked with black empowerment, Islam, New York, and hip-hop. Since their beginning as a cluster of outcasts from the Nation of Islam’s Harlem mosque in the 1960s, the story of the Five Percenters has been charged with drama and controversy. Spanning prison revolts, Brooklyn turf gangs and 1980s crack empires, this fast-paced investigation uncovers the community’s history, icons, and heritage, and examines its growing influence in urban American youth culture and hip hop.