About
Earl Hopkins is an award-winning features reporter for The Philadelphia Inquirer, covering arts, entertainment, and culture throughout the region. He’s also the co-host of the podcast Rap & Reason and co-author of the upcoming book, Raps of Resistance: How Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole Reignited a Hip-Hop Tradition.
Earl is a freelance music writer who’s contributed album and concert reviews, music history guides, and Q&As for Billboard, Complex, MTV News, GRAMMY.com, UPROXX, SPIN Magazine, and other outlets.
Work
Along with his editorial work, Earl is also a nationally featured photographer and public speaker, who’s connected with aspiring journalists across the country as a keynote speaker and event moderator.
He’s also the founder of Hopkins Media Enterprises LLC, a digital production house that specializes in content development and brand consulting for news organizations and higher-ed institutions.
Recent Bylines
Upcoming Book
Raps of Resistance
Conscious rap, a subgenre of hip-hop music that engages in dialogue about social and political issues and often challenges systems of oppression, ascended with pioneers like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, Public Enemy, and other acts at the helm. But in recent decades, it lost much of its favor in pop culture and mainstream hip-hop.
Earl Hopkins and Jeremy C. McCool explore the evolution of the subgenre and chronicle the rise of Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole. The two rappers are synonymous with chart-topping hits and platinum-selling albums, but their confessional poetry and soul-stirring lyrics have preserved the revolutionary spirit of their hip-hop forefathers and reignited conscious rap in the mainstream.