2 Chainz talks to God and/or himself, Alice Coltrane gets her long-overdue turn in the spotlight, Ani DiFranco shows some spirit, Bob Dylan sits in the director’s chair and more additions to your reading list. Are you sitting comfortably? Then we’ll begin:
The Voice In My Head Is God
By 2 Chainz & Derrick Harriell
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “In his most personal work yet, Grammy–winning rapper 2 Chainz shares the spiritual journey behind his success, offering a raw, reflective, and deeply motivational meditation on the inner voice that’s guided him his whole life: God. Before he was 2 Chainz, he was Tauheed Epps — an only child growing up in College Park, Georgia, raised by a single mother while his father served time in prison. Though he excelled in school and earned a basketball scholarship, the streets were never far behind, and by fifteen, he had been arrested and was hustling to survive. He faced doubt and self-destruction, but even then, something told him there had to be more. In The Voice In My Head Is God, 2 Chainz tells the story of how he walked away from the trap and found his purpose: not by fame or fear, but by faith. With his unmistakable voice and unflinching honesty, he reflects on the hardest moments of his life and the quiet revelations that shaped him. From the spiritual alarms he couldn’t ignore to the mentors who showed up at the right time, he explores how his music and verses poured out when he finally listened to the voice that had been there all along. From hanging with Lil Wayne to getting early help from Ludacris, 2 Chainz brings us into the defining moments of his life and career while delivering a powerful message about discipline, divine timing, and self-belief. Along the way, he shares a way of thinking, of trusting yourself, and of listening to the voice that never steers you wrong. Lyrical, grounded, and fiercely motivational The Voice In My Head Is God is part blueprint and all heart.”
Cosmic Music: The Life, Art, And Transcendence Of Alice Coltrane
By Andy Beta
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The first full-length biography of Alice Coltrane, the jazz musician and spiritual leader whose forward-thinking music was overshadowed by her more famous husband, even as she brilliantly laid the groundwork for the new age, ambient, and electronic music that would follow. Coltrane (1937-2007) was one of the most misunderstood artists of the last 60 years. For most of her life — and even in the decades since her passing — she was primarily known as the widow of the late John Coltrane. He is widely seen as being one of the greatest tenor saxophonists and composers of the 20th century, with a fervor and devotion approaching sainthood. Yet ever so slowly, that level of love and appreciation is also being bestowed upon pianist, organist, harpist, and composer Alice Coltrane.”
The Spirit Of Ani: Reflections On Spirituality, Feminism, Music, And Freedom
By Ani DiFranco & Lauren Coyle Rosen
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “The Spirit Of Ani is a captivating journey of intimate reflections with Ani DiFranco, a pathbreaking, highly original artist of our time. In this powerful collaborative work, the legendary folk-rock star and feminist icon is in conversation with author, artist, and cultural anthropologist Lauren Coyle Rosen. In these exchanges, Ani is remarkably open about her creativity, spirituality, personal experiences, and evolving consciousness. She is vulnerable and unapologetic, offering an unprecedented window into her fiercely prolific journeys. Expanding on themes from her best-selling memoir, Ani also offers fascinating reflections on contemporary popular culture — ranging from gender and queer politics, to the music industry in the virtual age, to climate change. The book includes previously unpublished photographs and journal entries, song-birth sheets, paintings, and the lyrics for some of her most treasured songs. The coauthors explore how Ani’s music and art are profoundly tied to her experiences of the interconnectedness of all consciousness and tuning in to receive creative inspiration. Ani’s striking openness produces a book that is both meditative and activating. This is a must-read for anyone intrigued by the dedication, intuition, and vision that drive Ani’s lifelong journey of creating art that not only reflects, but also empowers, transforms, and heals.”
Bob Dylan As Filmmaker: No Time To Think
By Michael Glover Smith
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “A deep dive into one of the most overlooked — and fascinating — sides of the 2016 Nobel Prize in Literature winner: Bob Dylan, the filmmaker. While his music and lyrics have been studied endlessly, his work behind (and in front of) the camera remains largely unexplored. No other book has taken this angle, and with Dylan’s legend still growing, the audience is more than ready for a bold new take. Bob Dylan As Filmmaker, the first book of its kind, opens up exciting new ways to think about the artistry of Dylan. It offers a captivating exploration into movies that, according to Michael Glover Smith, showcase Dylan not just as a subject, but as the primary author. These include Eat The Document — a short, experimental TV film shot in 1966 and released in 1972; the sprawling, genre-blurring epic Renaldo And Clara (1978), both directed by Dylan himself; and the darkly surreal Masked And Anonymous (2003), directed by Larry Charles but co-written by and starring Dylan. Bob Dylan As Filmmaker explores what these movies reveal about “how it feels” to be Dylan during three defining eras of his career: the revolutionary 1960s, the introspective 1970s, and the enigmatic early 2000s. Just as crucially, they illuminate Dylan’s remarkable instinct for using film not merely as a medium, but as a deeply personal mode of expression. The book also provides an essential survey of Dylan’s most recent movie projects, including those by other directors, in which Dylan’s influence is less overt but no less powerful. Here, Michael argues that Dylan operates as a kind of “invisible co-author” in Martin Scorsese‘s Rolling Thunder Revue (2019), where Dylan appears as a slippery, self-mythologizing interviewee; in Alma Har’el’s haunting Shadow Kingdom (2021), a stylized livestream performance; and in James Mangold’s A Complete Unknown (2024), the Timothée Chalamet-led biopic shaped in part by Dylan’s behind-the-scenes “script approval.”
The Music Of Mzilikazi Khumalo: Language, Culture & Song In South Africa
By Thomas Pooley
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “Mzilikazi Khumalo (1932-2021), an iconic figure in choral music in South Africa, rose to prominence as one of Africa’s leading composers of art music. This is a work of music history. Biographical essays on Khumalo’s major works, including those for choir, orchestra, and opera are complemented by contextual studies of his compositions and arrangements as well as reflections on his roles as editor, conductor, and music director. Specifically in the context of South Africa’s cultural and political transition from Apartheid to democracy, Khumalo’s key role in establishing the Nation Building Massed Choir Festival, a multi-racial institution that forged an inclusive space for music, in the 1980s is discussed as evidence of his importance and relevance in South African culture. Khumalo’s major works are studied in relation to contemporary art music, choral composition, and traditional song. These are UShaka KaSenzangakhona (1996), an African epic, and Princess Magogo KaDinuzulu (2002), one of the first indigenous African operas. Khumalo’s artistic collaborators provide insight into their experiences working on these major projects, documenting the relationships the composer cultivated with his peers. This volume addresses a lacuna in the literature on South African art music which until recently tended to focus on works in the classical tradition and shows that Khumalo is a composer without peer in his synthesis of classical and choral, traditional and contemporary.”
Cypress Hill: Black Sunday Graphic Novel Deluxe Edition
By Noah Callahan-Bever & Gabriel Alvarez
THE EDITED PRESS RELEASE: “A graphic novel celebration of the 30th anniversary of Cypress Hill’s seminal and groundbreaking album Black Sunday. Writers Noah Callahan-Bever and Gabriel Alvarez take you on a narrative trip through the making of the album as the artwork of Ken Knudsten, Sebastian Piriz, Giorgio Pontrelli, Felix Ruiz and Guillermo Sanno immerses you deep in the vibe and historic cultural events that surrounded Cypress Hill as they brought Black Sunday to life. With new cover art by the original album cover designer, Jay Papke, this is a tribute that is truly insane in the brain.”
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