
The Upcycled Self
A Memoir on the Art of Becoming Who We Are
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Narrated by:
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Tariq Trotter
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Rhett Samuel Price
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Allyson Johnson
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By:
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Tariq Trotter
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “One of hip-hop’s greatest MCs, unpacking his harrowing, remarkable journey in his own words, with enough insights for two lifetimes.”—Lin-Manuel Miranda, award-winning songwriter, producer, director, and creator of In the Heights and Hamilton
From one of our generation’s most powerful artists and incisive storytellers comes a brilliantly crafted work about the art—and war—of becoming who we are.
A ROLLING STONE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR
upcycle verb
up·cy·cle ˈəp-ˌsī-kəl
: to recycle (something) in such a way that the resulting product is of a higher value than the original item
: to create an object of greater value from (a discarded object of lesser value)
Today Tariq Trotter—better known as Black Thought—is the platinum-selling, Grammy-winning co-founder of The Roots and one of the most exhilaratingly skillful and profound rappers our culture has ever produced. But his story begins with a tragedy: as a child, Trotter burned down his family’s home. The years that follow are the story of a life snatched from the flames, forged in fire.
In The Upcycled Self, Trotter doesn’t only narrate a riveting and moving portrait of the artist as a young man, he gives readers a courageous model of what it means to live an examined life. In vivid vignettes, he tells the dramatic stories of the four powerful relationships that shaped him—with community, friends, art, and family—each a complex weave of love, discovery, trauma, and loss.
And beyond offering the compellingly poetic account of one artist’s creative and emotional origins, Trotter explores the vital questions we all have to confront about our formative years: How can we see the story of our own young lives clearly? How do we use that story to understand who we’ve become? How do we forgive the people who loved and hurt us? How do we rediscover and honor our first dreams? And, finally, what do we take forward, what do we pass on, what do we leave behind? This is the beautifully bluesy story of a boy genius’s coming-of-age that illuminates the redemptive power of the upcycle.
©2023 Random House Group (P)2023 Random House AudioListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
“Tariq Trotter, a founder of the music collective The Roots . . . could be hip-hop’s Dostoyevsky. Like the Russian novelist, Mr. Trotter (also known as Black Thought) has refined literary fire from the soulful furnace of pain and suffering.” —Barry Michael Cooper, The New York Times
“No one has ever been markedly better at rapping than Black Thought, and precious few musicians on earth have perfected their instrument to the extent that he has.” —Jack Hamilton, Slate
“The densely arrayed metaphors, the calibrated poise, and casual displays of erudition . . . Black Thought, née Tariq Trotter, is one of the greats in the pantheon of hip-hop.” —Jelani Cobb, The New Yorker
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An excellent origin story
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powerful
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Black thought is an outstanding writer, storyteller, and performer. He stands out as an oral historian of Black Philadelphia in the 1970s & 80s. 10/10
An oral history
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Excellent
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Great storytelling
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Amazing glimpse into the life and mind of a legend!
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No matter how difficult and painful it may seem we have to trust the proces
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An amazing literary experience
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The Upcyled Self is the Introduction to a Child, Survivor, Artist and Journeyman
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Authentic
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