Dr. Adam Bradley, scholar of hip-hop studies and African American literature, will discuss and sign copies of his Book of Rhymes: The Poetics of Hip Hop (Basic Civitas, February 2009). Free and open to the public, the lecture begins at 7 p.m. in Blount Auditorium.

According to Bradley, "Hip hop extends a tradition of lyricism that spans continents and stretches back thousands of years. Artists like Lil Wayne and Nas do what so much of today's literary poets do not, namely satisfy our innate desire for rhythm and rhyme."

The book features lyrics and techniques of Run-DMC, Rakim, William Shakespeare, Emily Dickinson, De La Soul, Langston Hughes, The Notorious B. I. G., Robert Frost, Tupac, W.B. Yeats, Kanye West, Derek Walcott, and Lil Wayne, among others.

Also at Rhodes on April 2, Bradley will discuss Three Days Before the Shooting, which is a 1,200 page collection of the manuscripts relating to Ralph Ellison's never-finished second novel. Free and open to the public, the lecture begins at 7 p.m. in Tuthill Performance Hall.

Bradley earned a Ph.D. in English from Harvard University, studying with Henry Louis Gates, Jr. and Cornel West. He currently is an associate professor of Literature at Claremont McKenna College.

His presentations at Rhodes are sponsored by the Department of English, African American Studies Program, Mike Curb Institute for Music, and Black Student Association. For more information, contact Dr. Scott Newstok at 901-843-3135.