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Illegal: A Hip-Hop Tale is a bold and gripping novel that explores the power of music, culture, and resistance. Set against the backdrop of a world where hip-hop is outlawed, it follows a young protagonist traversing a society that fears the art form that shapes him. Thought-provoking and raw, this book challenges perceptions and redefines freedom.

Yeshua, a young man, who is the son of a former Deejay and graffiti artist from New York, is introduced into his father’s world of Hiphop after his father’s tragic death when Yeshua is eleven. However, he soon learns that not everyone shares both he and his father’s enthusiasm towards Hiphop. Forced on his own at age twelve, after his orthodox christian mother, kicks him out because of his involvement in the underground world of emceeing, Yeshua moves in with his best friend, Mike.

Although extremely young, Yeshua soon makes a name for himself in the underground rap scene on the south side of Chicago. This popularity brings him both notoriety and dangerous enemies jealous of him winning underground emcee battles. However, these struggles pale in comparison when a civil race war breaks out in both the city and the country. As a result, Martial Law is declared and Hiphop, along with Rap music, is deemed treasonous and becomes illegal.

Yeshua, teams up with a young female emcee, V.J. Rock, who together become wanted fugitives in search of escape from the harsh new dystopian world that has become under the control of a globalised, one world government. The group must find a way to not only save themselves, but the culture and reputation of rap and Hiphop, in hopes that freedom of thought and expression ceases to be illegal.