Piskor's artistic style in Hip Hop Family Tree—including his use of
Ben-Day Dots[5]—hearkens back to the comic book styles prevalent during the period being retold.[6]Robert Crumb is openly referenced as an inspiration to Piskor,[7] who cites Crumb's "Heroes of Blues, Jazz & Country" trading cards as an influence. Crumb and Piskor are similar in their commemorations of key artists and musical figures, and the informative narration of their chosen genre's historical evolution.[8]
Publication history
Hip Hop Family Tree began on Boing Boing in January 2012 as a one-page "semi-regular ongoing feature",[9] and ran, mostly weekly, until December 2015.
Fantagraphics released the first "Treasury" collection, Hip Hop Family Tree Vol. 1: 1970s–1981, in 2013, and the second collection, covering the years 1981–1983, in 2014; both of which collected material that had been previously published on Boing Boing. That year the publisher also released a "Gift Box Set", collecting the first two treasury editions.
In August 2015, Fantagraphics released the third collection, covering the years 1983–1984, while also beginning a monthly magazine-format
limited series. That series ran 12 issues, through July 2016. Fantagraphics published volume 4 of the Treasury collection in July 2016. That year the publisher also released a "Gift Box Set", collecting volumes 3 and 4 of the Treasury editions.
An omnibus release of the entire series was released on October 17, 2023, sold in a deluxe hardcover with 140 pages of extras.
Hip Hop Family Tree Book 1: 1970s–1981 (Oct. 2013) — centers on the formative years of hip hop, presenting the intersecting stories of the genre's earliest pioneers and encompassing all aspects of the culture:
DJing,
B-boying,
MCing, and
graffiti. The comic begins with an introduction of
DJ Kool Herc and his famous rec-room parties at
1520 Sedgwick Avenue – following with
Afrika Bambaataa,
Grandmaster Flash and DJ Breakout, rival DJs with reign over their own subsections of the Bronx. The narrative also includes the stories of
Russell "Rush" Simmons and his management of
Kurtis Blow, and the young, ambitious
Joseph "Run" Simmons prior to the advent of
Run–D.M.C. Other notable mentions include
Sylvia Robinson and her creation of
The Sugarhill Gang,
Fab Five Freddy and his involvement with graffiti, and the underground New York art and punk scene,
Bobby Robinson's influential
Enjoy Records, as well as the rebellious, early years of
Rick Rubin which ultimately led to his contributions to hip hop. Piskor also references lesser known acts who share an integral place in the culture, such as the
Funky 4 + 1,
Grand Wizzard Theodore,
The Cold Crush Brothers,
DJ Disco Wiz,
Treacherous Three,
Grandmaster Caz, and the Fantastic Five. The volume concludes with the 1981 segment from 20/20 which presented hip hop to mainstream America, cementing the genre's transition from a primarily urban, grassroots movement to an international, money-making phenomenon.[10]
^Forman, Murray (2015-09-01). "Ed Piskor. Hip Hop Family Tree, Volume 1: 1970s–1981; Ed Piskor. Hip Hop Family Tree, Volume 2: 1981–1983. Seattle: PB - Fantagraphics Books, 2013. 112 pp.A1 - Ed Piskor . Hip Hop Family Tree, Volume 2: 1981–1983. Seattle: PB - Fantagraphics Books, 2014. 112 pp". Journal of Popular Music Studies. 27 (3): 374–378.
doi:
10.1111/jpms.12137.
ISSN1533-1598.