“MUSIC IS HISTORY” nominated in Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording category

Landover, MD, November 30, 2022—RBmedia, the largest audiobook publisher in the world, today announced that one of its bestselling audiobooks and New York Times bestselling book —”MUSIC IS HISTORY,” written and narrated by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson—received a Grammy nomination in the Best Audio Book, Narration, and Storytelling Recording category. The Recording Academy announced the 65th Grammy Awards nominees on November 15, 2022.

In MUSIC IS HISTORY, Questlove harnesses his encyclopedic knowledge of popular music and his deep curiosity about history to examine America over the past 50 years. The audiobook focuses on the years 1971 to the present, not only the country’s most complex and rewarding half-century when it comes to the ways that pop culture and culturally diverse history intersect, but also the years that overlap with Questlove’s own life. The listening experience is enhanced with music interwoven throughout organized around personal, playful themes that touch on everything from the relationship of hip-hop to music’s past to the secret ingredient in all funk songs…

“Music Is History is how I see the world. Music serves a series of Polaroids (ok, MPEGs for anyone born after 1995) that let me give historical context and compare historical moments. Today’s “It’s only Wednesday!” might wind up being tomorrow’s January 6th. Writing the book was fun, but crafting the audio version was more fun: it gave me creative space to stretch and score with actors and music,” said Questlove.

“This audiobook is a truly original blend of music, history, and storytelling. Questlove is a sage keeper of the fire who generously shares his music expertise and appreciation with listeners so that they become better listeners. There’s no better companion for this thrilling, music-driven ride through history. Congratulations to Questlove and the stellar production team on the Grammy nod,” said Troy Juliar, Chief Content Officer for RBmedia.

This is Questlove’s 18th Grammy nomination, of which the artist has taken home six wins. The news follows Questlove’s Oscar win earlier this year for his documentary “Summer of Soul.” He was also named among Time magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2022.

The 65th Grammy Awards winners will be announced Feb. 5, 2023. “MUSIC IS HISTORY” is produced by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, Scott Sherratt, and Alexis Rosenzweig and published by Recorded Books, RBmedia’s flagship audio brand, and available everywhere audiobooks are sold.

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About RBmedia
RBmedia is the largest audiobook publisher in the world. With more than 60,000 exclusive titles, our audiobooks continually dominate key literary awards and bestseller lists. The company’s powerful digital retail and library distribution network reaches millions of listeners around the globe—at home, in the car, and everywhere their mobile devices go. Our titles are available on leading audio platforms, including Audible, Spotify, iTunes, Google Play, Audiobooks.com, OverDrive, Hoopla, and many more. RBmedia is owned by KKR, a leading global investment firm. Find out more at rbmediaglobal.com.

ABOUT QUESTLOVE
Academy Award-winning filmmaker, drummer, DJ, producer, director, culinary entrepreneur, New York Times best-selling author, and member of The Roots – Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, is the unmistakable heartbeat of Philadelphia’s most influential hip-hop group. He is the Musical Director for The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, where his beloved Roots crew serves as house band. Beyond that, this 6-time GRAMMY Award winning musician’s indisputable reputation has landed him musical directing positions with everyone from D’Angelo to Jay-Z. Questlove recently made his directorial debut with the Academy Award winning feature documentary Summer of Soul. The movie broke the record for the highest selling documentary to come out of Sundance and it has since gone on to win “Best Feature Documentary” at the 2022 Academy Awards, “Best Documentary” at the 2022 British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA) and “Best Music Film” at the 2022 Grammy Awards, as well as a Peabody Award. In addition, Summer of Soul was named the “Best Movie of 2021” by The New York Times and was named one of the best of the year by The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, Entertainment Weekly, The Washington Post, TIME Magazine, The Hollywood Reporter, Rolling Stone and more. Outside of Summer of Soul, Questlove partnered together with Black Thought of The Roots to launch a production company, Two One Five Entertainment. Together, the pair announced a first-look deal with Universal Television to develop scripted and non-scripted programming. Two One Five Entertainment is set to executive produce Sam Pollard’s The League, a documentary centered on the tumultuous journey of Negro league baseball and also produce an upcoming documentary on the legendary Sly Stone, as well as various projects with partners such as Disney Jr. This year the company executive produced the acclaimed feature documentary Descendant about the historic discovery of The Clotilda, the last known slave ship to arrive in America illegally transporting enslaved Africans. The documentary, which made its world premiere at Sundance in 2022, was acquired by Netflix and Higher Ground, President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama’s production company. Questlove has written multiple books including the New York Times bestsellers Mo’ Meta Blues and Creative Quest, the GRAMMY nominated audio book Creative Quest, Soul Train: The Music, Dance and Style of a Generation, the James Beard nominated somethingtofoodabout, Mixtape Potluck, and the newly released GRAMMY nominated and New York Times bestseller Music Is History.

RBmedia media contact:
Rebecca Wyatt
[email protected]

Questlove media contact:
Carleen Donovan, The Oriel Company
212-677-0014 | [email protected]