Illmatic Consequences: The Clapback to Opponents of ‘Critical Race Theory’
Edited by Walter Greason and Danian Darrell Jerry

Illmatic Consequences: The Clapback to Opponents of ‘Critical Race Theory,’ is a unique mix of social science and hip-hop essays that address the marginalization of Blacks in the United States. Led by editors Walter Greason and Danian Jerry, the contributors in this edited volume address pervasive social injustice using hip-hop and Afrofuturism to offer solutions to cultural divisiveness.

Illmatic Consequences was influenced by rapper Nas’s 1994 debut album Illmatic,” which features internal rhymes and inner-city narratives based on Nas’s personal experiences. “Nas’s 1994 album ‘Illmatic’ is fundamentally a statement of self-worth. It’s not even just a conscious effort. It’s just you do it because it’s embedded in you—and that’s the feeling, the vibe we wanted anyone reading the book to get from all the constituent chapters,” said Greason.

The essays, written by prominent and emerging social science scholars, artists, and journalists, address the disinformation campaign around CRT, the attacks on public education, the rise of mass disinformation, and other social injustice issues plaguing the nation.

Illmatic Consequences is a bold intervention in the mushrooming field of Hip Hop Studies. The anthology uses Critical Race Theory lenses to theorize political, class, scientific, spatial, and cultural dimensions of Hip Hop as modality and practice. From considerations of proto-CRT scholar/activism to contemporary issues ranging from public health and Black representations in narrative meaning making to fundamental issues of housing and education, the message is clear: Culture is a tool for self-determination and self-defense among oppressed peoples.”
— Greg Carr, Ph.D., Chair of the Department of Afro-American Studies, Howard University, Adjunct Faculty, Howard School of Law