Chris Goossens
What have you been reading this summer? We’ve been SOHH hooked on writer Jonathan Reiss’s new Look At Me!: The XXXTENTACION Story, an all-encompassing look at the life and legacy of the late XXXTENTACION.
A Florida rapper, Reiss covers X’s illustrious yet short-lived musical career in amazing detail, with previously unknown information that truly will explain the polarizing figure all the way from his childhood to his tragic murder.
Each chapter, all of them except one aptly taking the same name of song by X, goes deeper than the facts. Filled with emotion, compassion, understanding, and accountability, Reiss takes an honest look into what made XXXTENTACION beloved by so many yet hated by others. From the validity about his domestic abuse allegations to the benefit concert he hosted for victims of the Parkland shooting, the book takes directly from those involved in his life and will draw out a superfluity of feelings you never thought could emerge from reading about a musician’s story.
With countless interviews, exclusive photos, and more, Look At Me! Is a necessary read over the 2020 summer for all music fans – whether it be a hip-hop fanatic or casual listener. SOHH spoke to Reiss about his new novel and he helped us come up with 5 reasons to buy the tell-all account of the slain 20-year-old artist.
1. Objective Truth
By all accounts, this is the first objective look at the life, career, and legacy of XXXTENTACION. It doesn’t make him out to be a god, nor a devil. The most controversial moments of X’s life are recounted in great detail from numerous points of view, as well as police and court documents all unearthed for the first time. At the same time, X finally is given credit by a piece of media for the impact he had on a generation. Once and for all the book answers the question: Was XXXTENTACION truly trying to turn his life around before it was taken from him?
2. Answers and Closure
For the first time, the book offers a blow-by-blow account of what occurred on June 18th, 2018. Long-standing questions like, “why the four men alleged to taken Jahseh Onfroy’s life were following him that day?” are answered. The book also delves into the possibility that the murder was a set-up, and ponders on what could have been.
3. 70 Interviews
Much of the new information in the book comes from 70 interviews conducted over the course of a year-and-a-half with people who were close to X, as well as experts, journalists, doctors, and attorneys. Close friends from nearly every era of his life give previously unknown details about who he was before he became XXXTENTACION. Everything is explored in great detail from his favorite anime, to his dreams and insecurities, even the way he played video games is explored. Reading Look At Me!: The XXXTENTACION Story even the most dedicated X fans will learn new information.
4. Unreleased Photographs
The book features 31 photos, of X and locations pertinent to his story. Most of the photographs are previously unreleased and stretch from his childhood to his final days.
5. It’s About Juice, Peep, and Mac… It’s About All Of Us
Look At Me! tells X’s story as a framework to also explore what has happened to hip-hop, young people, and society at large over the past decade. What does growing up in the social media landscape do to young people? Why is the suicide rate amongst Generation Z skyrocketing? Why did hip-hop split so abruptly? Most of all, why did so many artists that were the heroes of a generation die in such quick succession? Look At Me! isn’t just for X fans, it’s for their friends and loved ones, it’s for anyone that wants to better understand one of the most chaotic moments in the history of the culture.
