KING OF ROCK: Respect, Responsibility, and My Life with Run-DMC

As one-third of the groundbreaking and still-popular rap group Run-DMC, McDaniels has been involved with hip-hop culture since the beginning—New York City, circa 1980. In this hard-hitting yet sensitive autobiography, he emerges as far more than just "the guy with the big glasses," his early trademark look as DMC. McDaniels describes a range of key events from his early days in Hollis, Queens, to Run-DMC's current worldwide fame. He offers insightful anecdotes about other hip-hop legends, including manager Russell Simmons, producer Rick Rubin and a slew of artists including his colleagues Joe Simmons (Run) and Jam Master Jay, the Beastie Boys, Chuck D., L.L. Cool J. and Tupac Shakur. But McDaniels is most interested—and most interesting—in addressing the fans who may buy the book for the stories, but with whom he seeks to share his awareness about respect and responsibility. He says, "Respect is about spirit, integrity, and keeping yourself and your business clean," and follows with brutally frank discussions of Run-DMC's drug and alcohol problems and the rap recording industry's exploitative practices. He argues astutely that "very few of the rappers will admit that they're creating a fictional character," and thereby create problems for themselves. His message, "Maturity is not a matter of age," delivered as he describes his efforts to expand rap beyond violent gangster images, rings true as he discusses his sometimes rough attempts to understand his role as husband and father as well as his growing spiritual consciousness. 16 pages of photos. (Mar.)