The look of hip-hop.

In 1993, some 14 years after "Rappers Delight" set the tone for the emergence of hip-hop and urban culture and roughly 10 years after hip-hop had exploded into mainstream culture, music impresario Quincy Jones launched Vibe magazine. Foremost in its content, the creators of Vibe not only related the roots of urban culture but the frankness, manner and progress that echoed the ways in which hip-hop permeated nearly every aspect of modern society. Vibe immediately became recognized for its bold and insightful articles, essays and interviews that centered on an ethos characterized by its own distinctive language and lifestyle. The glossy magazine was also noted for its eye-catching images. Vibe focused on and celebrated the integral players of the hip-hop generation and the many observers who had--over the years--accepted it, embraced it, informed it, and even became influenced by it.

Vibe celebrates its 10th birthday with a splashy portrait gallery. Taken from its archives, the images of icons such as Mary J. Blige, Mos Def and Prince are snapped by a host of photographers who capture both the in-your-face attitude and rhythm of a culture and a generation that speak volumes.

--Reviewed by Clarence V. Reynolds

VX: 10 Years of Vibe Photography by Quincy Jones, Rob Kenner and George Pitts Harry N. Abrams, October 2003 $40.00, ISBN 0-810-94546-0