Love Me Please is a biography in comics of the amazing rock singer Janis Joplin, which recalls, respecting the chronology, the highlights of her journey from childhood, after the Second World War, to her abrupt death in late 1970.It is one of the most fabulous musical adventures in America n the second half of the twentieth century. Yet it lasted only five years.How did a very young messed up woman, a drug addict filled with doubt, become in a few years a planetary icon of rock music? She went from the shadows to the blinding light of fame in only four records (the last one issued a month and a half after her tragic death). Thanks to a worldwide movement of emancipation which would consecrate for a long time the ideals and modes of alternative lifestyles from counterculture to the flower power generation, Janis, the ugly duckling, gave free rein to her impulses. Fed by the thirst for freedom of the Beat Generation and the desire for emancipation expressed by American youth in the early 1960s, Janis Joplin left for San Francisco, the epicenter of cultural innovation. She will live there a freedom of which she would hardly have dared to dream, abandoning herself to all impulses, overcoming without hesitation all the taboos of the time: bisexuality, alcohol, drugs, doing so not only with delight, but with the taste for excess which came naturally from her spontaneous character. A lively, fascinating story of a woman ahead of her time.

How did a young girl born in South London grow up to be a Tony and Grammy Award–winning star? Find out in this Who HQ Now biography about Cynthia Erivo and her exciting career from The Color Purple on Broadway to starring as Elphaba in the Wicked movie!

Cynthia Erivo fell in love with performing when she was only five years old and sang "Silent Night" as a solo in a school Christmas play. When she grew up, she trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before beginning her career as a professional actress and singer. Cynthia made her Broadway debut in 2015 as Celie Harris in The Color Purple. This performance earned her the Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical. In 2017, she won her first Grammy Award for the cast album of The Color Purple. Cynthia went on to play Harriet Tubman in the blockbuster film Harriet in 2019. This movie earned Cynthia her first Academy Award nomination as a lead actress. In 2024, Cythia will star as Elphaba in the blockbuster movie muscial Wicked.

How did a teenage actress become a Grammy-winning pop star? Find out in this Who HQ Now biography about Ariana Grande and her exciting career that spans the Broadway stage, television, and music to blockbuster movies!

Ever since she was a child, Ariana Grande has been performing. When she was just fifteen years old, she made her Broadway debut in the musical 13. Shortly after, she appeared in the Nickelodeon TV show Victorious as the character Cat Valentine. During her time as a young actress, Ariana began her career in pop music. She released her first album when she was twenty years old and has gone on to release five more albums since. Ariana won her first Grammy Award in 2019 and her second in 2021. She has also won two Billboard Music Awards and three American Music Awards. Worldwide, Ariana has sold over 90 million records and earned over 98 billion streams. In 2024, she will star as Glinda in the blockbuster movie musical Wicked.

Not only was Bruce Springsteen "Born in the USA," he has risen to become a twenty-time Grammy winner and American icon.

Bruce Springsteen grew up in a blue-collar New Jersey town, where his parents struggled to make ends meet. Bruce didn't fit in at school but found solace in rock and roll and playing guitar. After the breakup of a local band he'd joined, Springsteen went out on his own and people began to take notice. He signed with Columbia Records and under pressure to come up with a hit, wrote "Born in the USA," which tells the story of America during the years of the Vietnam War. A multi-millionaire and twenty-time Grammy winner, the Boss has remained a working class hero whose music deals with the political and social changes in our country.

MUSICAL REVOLUTION SWEEPS NATION AND BEYOND
How did a bunch of young people from the inner city create a genre of music that became a global phenomenon? From its humble origins at house parties in the Bronx, where DJs mixed old records to create new sounds, charismatic MCs let their clever lyrics flow, and B-boys and B-girls pioneered inventive dance moves, hip-hop quickly became a musical and cultural revolution.

Hip-Hop: The Beat of America

Meet Aaliyah, a hip-hop superfan who is about to get a lesson in all things “old school” courtesy of her dad, who grew up in the 1970s when rap music first hit the scene. The pair take a day trip to the Bronx where Aaliyah discovers the many unsung heroes who helped create the foundations of the hip-hop we all enjoy today. So get ready to drop the beat, bust a move, and get down with some fresh rap knowledge!

Perfect for readers of Can't Stop, Won't Stop and Nathan Hale's Hazardous tales.

On August 15, 1969, a music festival called "Woodstock" transformed one small dairy farm in upstate New York into a gathering place for over 400,000 young music fans. Concert-goers, called "hippies," traveled from all over the country to see their favorite musicians perform. Famous artists like The Grateful Dead played day and night in a celebration of peace, love, and happiness. Although Woodstock lasted only three days, the spirit of the festival has defined a generation and become a symbol of the "hippie life."

American Association of University Women Award for Juvenile Literature 2016 Nominee.

Put on your dancing shoes and move to the music.

Rock and roll sprang from a combination of African-American genres, Western swing, and country music that exploded in post World War II America. Jim O'Connor explains what constitutes rock music, follows its history and sub-genres through famous musicians and groups, and shows how rock became so much more than just a style of music influencing fashion, language, and lifestyle.

This entry in the New York Times best-selling series contains eighty illustrations and sixteen pages of black and white photographs.

There is only one QUEEN OF SOUL! Discover why Aretha Franklin garners so much R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Aretha Franklin was a musical and cultural icon whose legacy spanned six decades! Born in Memphis, Tennessee, in 1942, Aretha got her start singing in front of her father's Baptist congregation and found minor success as a gospel singer. She then set her sights on becoming a pop music artist and used her powerful voice and impressive skills on the piano to get a record deal. Aretha released her first of many celebrated albums at the age of 18. In 1987, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, making her the first female artist to grace the prestigious list. With iconic hits such as "Respect" and "Think," and countless awards to her name including eighteen Grammys, Aretha Franklin was one of the bestselling artists of all time.

Was Johnny Cash always the rebellious "Man in Black" that we remember him as today? Find out in this biography from the #1 New York Times bestselling series that takes us from Cash's childhood on an Arkansas cotton farm to his first days in rockabilly through his most famous years as a country music legend and icon of American songwriting.

Due to his wide range of musical talent and an incomparable career spanning forty-nine years, Johnny Cash has been inducted into the Country, Rock and Roll, Rockabilly, and Gospel Halls of Fame. He also won 18 Grammys and 9 Country Music Association Awards. Who Was Johnny Cash? lets young readers learn about every step in Johnny Cash's groundbreaking musical career. As one of the best-selling American musicians of all time, Cash, born JR Carter, was known for his rich, deep voice and musical style that featured a chugging, train-like beat.

Get Up, Stand Up! for the king of reggae music!

Bob Marley was a reggae superstar who is considered to be one of the most influential musicians of all time. Born in rural Jamaica, this musician and songwriter began his career with his band, The Wailing Wailers, in 1963. The Wailers went on to spread the gospel of reggae music around the globe. Bob's distinctive style and dedication to his Rastafari beliefs became a rallying cry for the poor and disenfranchised the world over and led to a hugely successful solo career. After his death in 1981, Bob Marley became a symbol of Jamaican culture and identity. His greatest-hits album, Legend, remains the best-selling reggae album of all time. Who Was Bob Marley? tells the story of how a man with humble roots became an international icon.

This title in the New York Times best-selling series contains eighty illustrations that help bring the story to life.

How did a working-class young man from Washington, DC, turn the music world on its head and become the "Master Of Jazz"? Find out in this addition to the Who HQ library!

A pivotal fixture of the Harlem Renaissance, Duke Ellington was the bandleader of the historic Cotton Club and a master composer -- writing close to 3,000 songs in his lifetime and capturing the spirit of the Black experience in the Unites States. Over a 50-year career, Ellington became one of the biggest names in jazz as we know it. He went on to win 13 Grammys, a Pulitzer, and receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1969. Who Was Duke Ellington? follows the exciting, multifaceted journey of this musical genius and takes a look at what truly makes Ellington an artist "beyond category."

Follow the bad boys of rock and roll from their beginnings in London to their unparalleled success around the world.

Starting out over fifty years ago, the Rolling Stones took the music of the blues and blended it into rock and roll to create their own unique sound. Decades later, they are still hard at work, recording and playing live to massive crowds of adoring fans. Who Are the Rolling Stones? captures the excitement of the Stones on their journey to become the greatest rock-and-roll band in the world.

A primary prelude to drums, including what the percussion instruments look and sound like, basic instructions on how to play them, and the kinds of music that feature them.