Rap and Redemption on Death Row: Seeking Justice and Finding Purpose behind Bars - Softcover

Braxton, Alim; Katz, Mark

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1469678713 ISBN 13: 9781469678719

Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press, 2024

Synopsis

Imprisoned since age nineteen, Alim Braxton has spent more than a quarter century on North Carolina’s death row. During that time, he converted to Islam and dedicated his life to redemption. Braxton, a rapper since the age of thirteen, uses his rhymes as a form of therapy and to advocate for prison reform, particularly by calling attention to the plight of the wrongfully incarcerated. This book, a hip-hop-rich prison memoir, chronicles Braxton’s struggles and triumphs as he attempts to record an album while on death row, something no one has done before.

Braxton’s world is complex: full of reflections on guilt, condemnation, incarceration, religious awakening, and the redemptive power of art. Ultimately, Braxton shows us that even amid the brutality of our prison system there are moments of joy, and on death row joy may be the most powerful form of resistance.

About this title

About the Authors

Alim Braxton (a.k.a. RRome Alone) is a writer, rapper, and activist living on North Carolina’s death row in Raleigh.

Mark Katz is the John P. Barker Distinguished Professor of Music at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the author of several books, including Build: The Power of Hip Hop Diplomacy in a Divided World.

Edition details

• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press
• Publication date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1469678713
• ISBN 13: 9781469678719
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 248