The 16 Best Books About Music From the Last Decade

"The Upcycled Self: A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are" ($9)

A memoir from hip hop great Tariq Trotter, also known as Black Thought and co-founder of The Roots, "The Upcycled Self" is broken into four vignettes that each illustrate a different force that shaped him and his career: community, friends, art, and family.

"Holding the Note" ($17)

This book is a collection of "New Yorker" editor and Pulitzer Prize–winner David Remnick's music writing throughout the decades. And yes, it's perfect for music journalism fanatics. Spanning Remnick's career over the last 50 years, "Holding the Note" is packed with features on greats like Leonard Cohen, Buddy Guy, Mavis Staples, Paul McCartney, and Bruce Springsteen.

"Major Labels: A History of Popular Music in Seven Genres" ($20)

For anyone who considers themselves "genre agnostic," this book is for you. Author Kelefa Sanneh has compiled granular reporting on the history of rock, R&B, hip hop, dance, country, pop, and punk, and offers readers fascinating studies on the niche moments that changed each genre's trajectory and perception forever.

"Larger Than Life: A History of Boy Bands from NKOTB to BTS" ($25)

One of the premiere voices on boy bands and their politics, fandoms, and cultural weight, Maria Sherman has written what is almost certainly the world's most comprehensive history of the modern boy band that will have any child of the 90s squarely in their feels. (Plus, it's illustrated!)

"I'll Take You There: Mavis Staples, the Staple Singers, and the March up Freedom's Highway" ($43)

Mavis Staples, lead singer of the Staple Singers, is one of the most important musical artists of the civil rights era. From a family of musicians, Staples melded genres, creating music that was a mix of gospel, soul, folk, and rock, and was able to reach beyond race lines. This biography from music journalist Greg Kot tells a version of her story that's never been told before.

"She Begat This: 20 Years of The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" ($12)

In this book, feminist author Joan Morgan celebrates the legacy of Lauryn Hill's first solo studio album, which has been credited time and again as one of the most influential albums of all time.

"Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics" ($20)

Not only does this memoir provide the context and history behind country music icon Dolly Parton's most beloved songs, it's also chock full of visuals that had not been seen by the general public until publication.

"God Save the Queens: The Essential History of Women in Hip-Hop" ($17)

The women who have fueled hip hop's popularity from the very beginning are regularly neglected and ignored in the retelling of the remarkable story of hip hop's origins. That is, until Kathy Iandoli published this book as a tribute to those in front of and behind the scenes whose hard work was instrumental in establishing hip hop as a global movement.

"Face It: A Memoir" ($13)

From Blondie herself, this memoir conjures up the grungy stages of 1970s New York City, where the now-iconic Debbie Harry shredded alongside household names like the Ramones, Talking Heads, Iggy Pop, and David Bowie.

"Revenge of the She-Punks: A Feminist Music History from Poly Styrene to Pussy Riot" ($18)

One of the first women to find success as a music writer in Britain, author Vivien Goldman herself is an important figure in music history. With this book, she guides readers through the many ways that music as a medium has aided countless women around the world in finding their agency. She also documents the sometimes obscure and always fascinating history of women punk artists and innovators.

"I Put a Spell on You: The Autobiography Of Nina Simone" ($12)

A staggering fact: Nina Simone recorded more than 40 albums between 1958 and 1974. This prolific artist was easily one of the most influential of the 20th century, but her political and cultural legacy are only part of what's exposed in her autobiography, which also details her legal and financial troubles, her marriages, her attempted suicide, and her survival through it all.

"Just Kids: An Autobiography" ($10)

A real New York tale of love and friendship, Patti Smith's "Just Kids" is a meditation on her relationship with photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, and the whacky world they entered when they decided to bunk at the Hotel Chelsea in 1969.

"Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl: A Memoir" ($12)

The multitalented rocker Carrie Brownstein of Sleater-Kinney (and "Portlandia") fame wrote one of the most celebrated music memoirs of the 21st century, recounting how her childhood in the Pacific Northwest coincided with the heyday of that region's flourishing underground music scene.

"Lady Sings the Blues" ($15)

Billie Holiday's memoir follows her trajectory from her childhood home in Baltimore to Harlem and later to Hollywood, where she would eventually be embraced as a member of the glamorous elite — before her death at 44.

"How to Write One Song: Loving the Things We Create and How They Love Us Back" ($15)

In this charming guide, Wilco's front-man Jeff Tweedy peels back the curtain on his creative process, encouraging readers to embrace and harness the "magic" of their own creativity in small, accessible ways.

"Bridge and Tunnel Boys: Bruce Springsteen, Billy Joel, and the Metropolitan Sound of the American Century" ($27)

This book by cultural historian Jim Cullen draws parallels between two of the most iconic American voices of the 1970s and beyond: Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel. It also connects other fascinating sociopolitical dots about the period in which they rose to fame, and the influence of the not-quite-New York City region that they both call home.

Emma Glassman-Hughes (she/her) is the associate editor at PS Balance. In her seven years as a reporter, her beats have spanned the lifestyle spectrum; she's covered arts and culture for The Boston Globe, sex and relationships for Cosmopolitan, and food, climate, and farming for Ambrook Research.