Born in Miami’s notorious Liberty City, Luther Campbell witnessed poverty, despair, and crime firsthand. He created one of the first hip-hop record companies, Luke Records, which started out of a shed in his mom’s backyard and grew into a multimillion-dollar enterprise. As a rapper on his own label, Luke became known as the “King of Dirty Rap” and helped pioneer the worldwide phenomenon of Miami Bass. He went on to become the front man and manager for the rap group 2 Live Crew, and was key to the success of the group’s controversial platinum recording As Nasty As They Wanna Be. The Book of Luke: My Fight for Truth, Justice, and Liberty City (Amistad) is Campbell’s raw and powerful true story of how one man invented Southern Hip-Hop, saved the First Amendment, and became a role model for his disenfranchised Miami neighborhood—living proof that one person can make a difference in the world.
