Hanif Abdurraqib

Abdurraqib was born and raised in Columbus, Ohio.{{Cite web |last=Annie Nickoloff |first=cleveland com |date=2019-12-04 |title='I love where I'm from': Hanif Abdurraqib talks Columbus, music, activism in Q&A |url=https://www.cleveland.com/life-and-culture/g66l-2019/12/df71d5446f6950/i-love-where-im-from-hanif-abdurraqib-talks-columbus-music-activism-in-qa.html |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=cleveland |language=en}} He was raised Muslim.{{cite web | url=https://www.buzzfeednews.com/amphtml/hanifabdurraqib/why-i-still-fast-during-ramadan | title=Why I Still Fast During Ramadan | website=BuzzFeed News | date=May 15, 2018 }}{{cite news|last1=Lam|first1=Amy|title=Writer Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib on Poetry & Punk Rock|url=https://bitchmedia.org/article/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-interview-poet-punk-rock-diy|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=Bitch Magazine|date=April 28, 2016|archive-date= August 17, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160817091822/https://bitchmedia.org/article/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-interview-poet-punk-rock-diy|url-status=live}}{{cite news|last1=Thompson|first1=Erica|title=People: Poet Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib explores the changing landscape of Columbus|url=http://www.columbusalive.com/content/stories/2016/07/14/people-poet-hanif-willis-abdurraqib-explores-the-changing-landscape-of-columbus.html|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=Columbus Alive|date=July 14, 2016|archive-date= July 15, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160715142654/http://www.columbusalive.com/content/stories/2016/07/14/people-poet-hanif-willis-abdurraqib-explores-the-changing-landscape-of-columbus.html|url-status=live}} When Abdurraqib was aged 13, his mother died from an abnormal heartbeat caused by her bipolar medicine. He graduated from Beechcroft High School in 2001.{{Cite web |date=2022-08-19 |title=Columbus author Hanif Abdurraqib hosting free back to school party Saturday |url=https://news.wosu.org/2022-08-19/columbus-author-hanif-abdurraqib-hosting-free-back-to-school-party-saturday |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=WOSU News |language=en}} He then attended Capital University, where he earned a degree in marketing and played on the soccer team.

Columbus is the setting for Abdurraqib's first book, a poetry collection called The Crown Ain't Worth Much (Button Poetry, July 2016).{{cite news|last1=Roka|first1=Les|title=Backstage at The Utah Arts Festival 2016: A closer look at some of the nationally known Literary Arts performers, poets, songwriters|url=https://www.theutahreview.com/backstage-utah-arts-festival-2016-closer-look-nationally-known-literary-arts-performers-poets-songwriters/|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=The Utah Review|date= June 21, 2016|archive-date= August 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806110824/https://www.theutahreview.com/backstage-utah-arts-festival-2016-closer-look-nationally-known-literary-arts-performers-poets-songwriters/|url-status=live}} Publishers Weekly{{'}}s review noted, "When Willis-Abdurraqib meditates on the dangers of being young and black in America, the power of his poetry is undeniable".{{cite news|title=Fiction Book Review: The Crown Ain't Worth Much by Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib|url=http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-94373-504-4|access-date= July 19, 2016|work=Publishers Weekly|date=June 20, 2016|archive-date= October 13, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161013054209/http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-94373-504-4|url-status=live}} The Indiana Review called the collection "expansive and rich...compassionate, elegiac."{{cite news|last1=Palomo|first1=Willy|title=Microreview: Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib's The Crown Ain't Worth Much|url=https://indianareview.org/2016/07/microreview-hanif-willis-abdurraqibs-the-crown-aint-worth-much/|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=Indiana Review|date=July 8, 2016|archive-date= August 8, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808064345/https://indianareview.org/2016/07/microreview-hanif-willis-abdurraqibs-the-crown-aint-worth-much/|url-status=live}} Fusion called his "poetry a crash course in emotional honesty."{{Cite news|url=http://fusion.net/story/327660/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-the-crown-aint-worth-much/|title=Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib's poetry is a crash course in emotional honesty|last=McKinney|first=Kelsey|date=July 20, 2016|work=Fusion|access-date=July 21, 2016|archive-date=July 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160721124112/http://fusion.net/story/327660/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-the-crown-aint-worth-much/|url-status=live}} Writing of the collection's titular poem, The Huffington Post said Abdurraqib's "chilling take on black death is heartbreakingly true."{{cite news|last1=Finley|first1=Taryn|title=This Poet's Chilling Take On Black Death Is Heartbreakingly True|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/this-poets-chilling-take-on-black-death-is-heartbreakingly-true_us_5745b948e4b0dacf7ad38089|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=The Huffington Post|date= May 25, 2016|archive-date=18 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160618054013/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/this-poets-chilling-take-on-black-death-is-heartbreakingly-true_us_5745b948e4b0dacf7ad38089|url-status=live}}

Abdurraqib is a Pushcart Prize nominee and a Callaloo Creative Writing Fellow. PBS's Articulate with Jim Cotter described Abdurraqib as "of a generation that is helping to redefine poetry".{{cite news|last1=Cotter|first1=Jim|title=Articulate on PBS {{!}} Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib, Goldberg Variations, Krimes|url=https://www.pbs.org/video/2365711760/|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=PBS Articulate with Jim Cotter|date=April 27, 2016|archive-date=19 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160819100753/http://www.pbs.org/video/2365711760/|url-status=live}} Blavity called Abdurraqib one of "13 Young Black Poets You Should Know".{{cite news|last1=Mendoza|first1=Genesis|title=13 Young Black Poets You Should Know -|url=http://blavity.com/13-young-black-poets-you-should-know/|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=Blavity|date= May 5, 2015|archive-date= July 20, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160720235427/http://blavity.com/13-young-black-poets-you-should-know/|url-status=live}} He is a poetry editor at Muzzle Magazine{{Cite news|url=http://columbiapoetryreviews.colum.edu/muzzle-magazines-stevie-edwards-and-hani|title=Muzzle Magazine: Conversations About History and Aesthetic with Stevie Edwards and Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib|last=Sullivan|first=Dan "Sully"|date=February 19, 2016|work=Columbia Poetry Review|access-date=July 26, 2016|archive-date=August 9, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160809005002/http://columbiapoetryreviews.colum.edu/muzzle-magazines-stevie-edwards-and-hani|url-status=live}} and a founder, with Eve Ewing, of the Echo Hotel poetry collective. He edited an anthology of poems about pop music called Again I Wait For This To Pull Apart (FreezeRay Press, 2015).{{Cite news|url=http://www.freezeraypoetry.com/freezerated/freezeray-five-hanif-willis-abdurraqib|title=FreezeRay Five: Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib|date=January 3, 2015|work=FreezeRay|access-date=July 28, 2016|archive-date=August 18, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818130949/http://www.freezeraypoetry.com/freezerated/freezeray-five-hanif-willis-abdurraqib|url-status=live}} In April 2017 his chapbook Vintage Sadness had a limited edition release by Big Lucks, selling out its print run of 500 copies in just under six hours. In August 2017, he was named the managing editor of Button Poetry. On September 3, 2019, Tin House released Abdurraqib's second poetry collection, A Fortune for Your Disaster.{{Cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781947793439|website=www.publishersweekly.com|access-date=August 20, 2019|title=Poetry Book Review: A Fortune for Your Disaster by Hanif Abdurraqib. Tin House, $15.95 (120p) ISBN 978-1-947793-43-9|archive-date=August 20, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190820020616/https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781947793439|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://tinhouse.com/product/a-fortune-for-your-disaster/|title=A Fortune for Your Disaster|website=Tin House|language=en-US|access-date=September 20, 2019|archive-date=August 23, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190823174942/https://tinhouse.com/product/a-fortune-for-your-disaster/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|last=Bracken|first=Conor|date=November 27, 2019|title="What a Miracle": On Hanif Abdurraqib's "A Fortune for Your Disaster"|url=https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/what-a-miracle-on-hanif-abdurraqibs-a-fortune-for-your-disaster/|access-date=October 10, 2020|website=Los Angeles Review of Books|archive-date=September 20, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200920235300/https://lareviewofbooks.org/article/what-a-miracle-on-hanif-abdurraqibs-a-fortune-for-your-disaster/|url-status=live}}

Abdurraqib was a visiting poet teaching in the MFA program at Butler University during the fall of 2018.{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/nifmuhammad/status/960570998587363328?lang=en|title=in a Day Of News: I'm joining the MFA faculty at Butler University this fall, teaching the poetry workshop. This is a real honor and I'm excited for the challenge.|last=Abdurraqib|first=Hanif|date=February 5, 2018|website=Twitter|language=en|access-date=March 16, 2018}}{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/NifMuhammad/status/974761261899702274|title=Got my letter of appointment to teach at Butler in the fall on the same day they won their first game of the tournament, gotta be a good sign of something|last=Abdurraqib|first=Hanif|date=March 16, 2018|website=Twitter|language=en|access-date=March 17, 2018}}

Abdurraqib's writing has appeared in The Fader, The New York Times, and Pitchfork,{{cite news|last1=Roka|first1=Les|title=Backstage at The Utah Arts Festival 2016: Literary Arts venue - relevant, human, powerful, voluminous|url=https://www.theutahreview.com/backstage-utah-arts-festival-2016-literary-arts-venue-relevant-human-powerful-voluminous/|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=The Utah Review|date= June 21, 2016|archive-date= August 6, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160806072101/https://www.theutahreview.com/backstage-utah-arts-festival-2016-literary-arts-venue-relevant-human-powerful-voluminous/|url-status=live}} as well as previously serving as a columnist at MTV News,{{Cite news|url=https://hazlitt.net/feature/brief-bright-collection-hours-interview-hanif-willis-abdurraqib|title='This Brief, Bright Collection of Hours': An Interview with Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib|last=Cooper|first=Julia|date=January 10, 2017|work=Hazlitt|access-date=January 6, 2018|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106231810/https://hazlitt.net/feature/brief-bright-collection-hours-interview-hanif-willis-abdurraqib|url-status=live}} writing about music, culture, and identity. The Huffington Post named his essay on Fetty Wap's song "Trap Queen" to its list of "The Most Important Writing From People of Color in 2015."{{cite news|last1=Blay|first1=Zeba|title=The Most Important Writing From People Of Color In 2015|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-most-important-writing-from-people-of-color-in-2015_us_5668639de4b009377b2346ad|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=The Huffington Post|date=16 December 2015|archive-date= September 11, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160911120148/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/the-most-important-writing-from-people-of-color-in-2015_us_5668639de4b009377b2346ad|url-status=live}} Discussing Abdurraqib's essay on the late Muhammad Ali as inspiration to a generation of hip-hop artists, critic Ned Raggett called the piece a "standout" among the many elegies.{{cite news|last1=Raggett|first1=Ned|title=Ned's Atomic Link Bin: Kim Kardashian: Punk Inspiration, Iranian Rave Busts, When ZZ Top Were the Zombies and More|url=http://www.nashvillescene.com/music/article/13064429/neds-atomic-link-bin-kim-kardashian-punk-inspiration-iranian-rave-busts-when-zz-top-were-the-zombies-and-more|access-date= July 17, 2016|work=Nashville Scene|date=June 9, 2016|archive-date= August 21, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160821174112/http://www.nashvillescene.com/music/article/13064429/neds-atomic-link-bin-kim-kardashian-punk-inspiration-iranian-rave-busts-when-zz-top-were-the-zombies-and-more|url-status=live}}

Abdurraqib's essay collection They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us was published in November 2017 by Two Dollar Radio.{{Cite news|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/hanif-abdurraqib/they-cant-kill-us-until-they-kill-us/|title=THEY CAN'T KILL US UNTIL THEY KILL US by Hanif Abdurraqib|date=October 2, 2017|work=Kirkus Reviews|access-date=January 6, 2018|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106183914/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/hanif-abdurraqib/they-cant-kill-us-until-they-kill-us/|url-status=live}} The Chicago Tribune named it to a list of "25 must-read books" for the fall of 2017{{Cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-must-read-books-fall-20170830-photogallery.html|title=25 must-read books this fall|last=Pearson|first=Laura|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=September 3, 2017|language=en-US|archive-date=September 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903020154/http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-must-read-books-fall-20170830-photogallery.html|url-status=live}} and Publishers Weekly gave it a starred review, calling the collection "mesmerizing and deeply perceptive".{{Cite news|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781937512651|title=Nonfiction Book Review: They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us: Essays by Hanif Abdurraqib. Two Dollar Radio, $15.99 trade paper (236p) ISBN 978-1-937512-65-1|date=August 14, 2017|work=Publishers Weekly|access-date=August 14, 2017|language=en|archive-date=August 14, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170814102752/https://www.publishersweekly.com/9781937512651|url-status=live}} The book also received favorable reviews from the Chicago Tribune{{Cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/sc-books-they-cant-kill-us-til-they-kill-us-hanif-abdurraquib-1122-story.html|title=Hanif Abdurraqib's new collection of music criticism, essays vibrates with soul|last=Muyumba|first=Walton|date=November 20, 2017|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=January 6, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106135354/http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/sc-books-they-cant-kill-us-til-they-kill-us-hanif-abdurraquib-1122-story.html|url-status=live}} and The Washington Post (where Pete Tosiello described They Can't Kill Us as "a breathtaking collection of largely music-focused essays"),{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/hanif-abdurraqibs-vital-meditation-on-music--and-living-and-dying-in-america/2017/12/12/1036f616-df6b-11e7-8679-a9728984779c_story.html|title=Review {{!}} Hanif Abdurraqib's vital meditation on music — and living and dying in America|last=Tosiello|first=Pete|date=December 12, 2017|newspaper=Washington Post|access-date=January 6, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0190-8286|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106231741/https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/hanif-abdurraqibs-vital-meditation-on-music--and-living-and-dying-in-america/2017/12/12/1036f616-df6b-11e7-8679-a9728984779c_story.html|url-status=live}} and The New York Times Magazine featured a passage from the collection in the magazine's "New Sentences" column.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/08/magazine/new-sentences-from-hanif-abdurraqibs-they-cant-kill-us-until-they-kill-us.html|title=New Sentences: From Hanif Abdurraqib's 'They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us'|last=Anderson|first=Sam|date=December 8, 2017|work=The New York Times|access-date=January 6, 2018|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106222954/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/12/08/magazine/new-sentences-from-hanif-abdurraqibs-they-cant-kill-us-until-they-kill-us.html|url-status=live}} A special [https://twodollarradio.com/products/they-cant-kill-us five year anniversary edition of the collection] will be released on November 15, 2022, featuring three new essays and an audiobook version recorded by Abdurraqib himself.

Abdurraqib published Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest in 2019 as part of University of Texas Press's American Music Series,{{Cite web|url=https://www.publishersmarketplace.com/dealmakers/detail.cgi?id=3641|title=Dealmaker: University of Texas Press|website=Publishers Marketplace}}{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/jesshopp/status/974672535181778950|title=In the American Music Series is @NifMuhammad's forthcoming critical history of Tribe Called Quest. Some previous hitters: Kristin Hersh's Vic Chesnutt bk, Holly Gleason's bk on legacy of women in country, bks from Chris Stamey and Alina Simone|last=Hopper|first=Jessica|date= March 16, 2018|website=Twitter|language=en|access-date=March 16, 2018}} edited by Jessica Hopper, David Menconi, and Oliver Wang.{{Cite news|url=https://utpress.utexas.edu/books/series/american-music-series|title=American Music Series|work=The University of Texas Press|access-date=March 16, 2018|language=en|archive-date=March 20, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170320125801/https://utpress.utexas.edu/books/series/american-music-series|url-status=live}} It debuted at number 13 on The New York Times bestseller list for paperback non-fiction{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/paperback-nonfiction/?module=DropDownNav&action=click®ion=navbar&contentCollection=Books&version=Nonfiction&referrer=https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/&pgtype=Reference|title=Paperback Nonfiction Books - Best Sellers|date=February 17, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 8, 2019|language=en|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=February 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209124524/https://www.nytimes.com/books/best-sellers/paperback-nonfiction/?module=DropDownNav&action=click®ion=navbar&contentCollection=Books&version=Nonfiction&referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2Fbooks%2Fbest-sellers%2F&pgtype=Reference|url-status=live}} and received strongly favorable reviews from critics.{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/30/books/review-go-ahead-in-rain-tribe-called-quest-hanif-abdurraqib.html|title=An Intensely Personal Tribute to A Tribe Called Quest|last=Szalai|first=Jennifer|date=January 30, 2019|work=The New York Times|access-date=February 8, 2019|language=en-US|issn=0362-4331|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207211753/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/30/books/review-go-ahead-in-rain-tribe-called-quest-hanif-abdurraqib.html|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|title=Book Marks reviews of Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest by Hanif Abdurraqib|url=https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/go-ahead-in-the-rain-notes-to-a-tribe-called-quest/|access-date=October 28, 2020|website=Book Marks|language=en-US|archive-date=October 25, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201025161314/https://bookmarks.reviews/reviews/go-ahead-in-the-rain-notes-to-a-tribe-called-quest/|url-status=live}} Reviewers stressed the accomplishment of integrating music history with both a broader history and a more personal one.{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/a-true-fan-offers-a-riveting-tribute-to-a-tribe-called-quest/2019/01/25/c2d485b0-20b8-11e9-8e21-59a09ff1e2a1_story.html|title=A true fan offers a riveting tribute to A Tribe Called Quest|last=Edgers|first=Geoff|date=January 26, 2019|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=February 7, 2019|archive-date=February 7, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207004123/https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/books/a-true-fan-offers-a-riveting-tribute-to-a-tribe-called-quest/2019/01/25/c2d485b0-20b8-11e9-8e21-59a09ff1e2a1_story.html|url-status=live}} Writing for Publishers Weekly, Ed Nawotka called the book "part academic monograph on the group and its music, part pocket history of hip-hop, part memoir, and part epistolary elegy. It is a book that conveys the wonder of being a fan and the visceral impact of experiencing the feeling of having oneself reflected back in music and pop culture."{{Cite web|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/trade-shows-events/article/78982-wi14-looking-at-our-cultural-moment-with-hanif-abdurraqib.html|title=WI14: Looking at Our Cultural Moment with Hanif Abdurraqib|last=Nawotka|first=Ed|date=January 11, 2019|website=Publishers Weekly|language=en|access-date=February 8, 2019|archive-date=February 9, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190209180259/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/industry-news/trade-shows-events/article/78982-wi14-looking-at-our-cultural-moment-with-hanif-abdurraqib.html|url-status=live}} For NPR Lily Meyer praised Abdurraqib's "seemingly limitless capacity to share what moves him, which means that to read Go Ahead in the Rain, you don't need to be a Tribe Called Quest fan: Abdurraqib will make you one."{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2019/02/05/691293961/in-go-ahead-in-the-rain-the-love-for-a-tribe-called-quest-is-infectious|title=In 'Go Ahead In The Rain,' The Love For A Tribe Called Quest Is Infectious|last=Meyer|first=Lily|date=February 5, 2019|website=NPR|language=en|access-date=February 8, 2019|archive-date=February 8, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190208052154/https://www.npr.org/2019/02/05/691293961/in-go-ahead-in-the-rain-the-love-for-a-tribe-called-quest-is-infectious|url-status=live}} The book was a finalist for the Kirkus Prize in Nonfiction{{Cite web|title=KIRKUS ANNOUNCES THE FINALISTS FOR THE 2019 KIRKUS PRIZE|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/press-center/press/announces-2019-prize-finalists/|access-date=October 23, 2020|website=Kirkus Reviews|language=en|archive-date=October 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201024214345/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/press-center/press/announces-2019-prize-finalists/|url-status=live}} and longlisted for the National Book Award for Nonfiction.{{Cite web|date=September 18, 2019|title=Nonfiction - 70th National Book Awards|url=https://www.nationalbook.org/2019-national-book-awards-longlist-for-nonfiction/|access-date=October 23, 2020|website=National Book Foundation|language=en-US|archive-date=October 26, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026122336/https://www.nationalbook.org/2019-national-book-awards-longlist-for-nonfiction/|url-status=live}}

In January 2018, Abdurraqib announced he had signed a two-book deal with Random House; announced as a nonfiction book They Don't Dance No' Mo' on the history of black performance in the United States, to be published in 2020 and an essay collection following up on They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us.{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/NifMuhammad/status/954391321749286912|title=SOME NEWS, FRIENDS. I will be writing two books for Random House. This is very much a dream come true. I hope the books are not bad. Shoutout to Goodie Mob for the title. Shoutout to all the writers who pushed & continue to push me to be better.pic.twitter.com/gTV9zASEbp|last=Abdurraqib|first=Hanif|date= January 19, 2018|website=Twitter|language=en|access-date=January 20, 2018|archive-date=January 19, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180119230721/https://twitter.com/nifmuhammad/status/954391321749286912|url-status=live}}

About They Can't Kill Us, a review from Booklist wrote: "Abdurraqib writes with uninhibited curiosity and insight about music and its ties to culture and memory, life and death, on levels personal, political, and universal... Abdurraqib’s poignant critiques, a catalog of the current moment and all that preceded it, inspire us to listen with our whole selves."{{Cite web|title=Buy My Books|url=http://www.abdurraqib.com/book|access-date=July 23, 2021|website=Hi. I'm Hanif. I write poems. I write Things About Music. I am probably eating french fries.|language=en-US}}

The first book in the Random House deal was retitled A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance and was released March 30, 2021.{{Cite web|last=|first=|date=December 30, 2020|title=A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-98-480119-7|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210110042120/https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-98-480119-7|archive-date=January 10, 2021|access-date=January 23, 2021|website=Publishers Weekly}} A Little Devil received a starred prepublication review in Publishers Weekly, which wrote: "Filled with nuance and lyricism, Abdurraqib's luminous survey is stunning." Kirkus called the book: "A thoughtful memoir rolled into a set of joined essays on life, death, and the Black experience in America....Another winner from Abdurraqib, a writer always worth paying attention to."{{cite magazine|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/hanif-abdurraqib/a-little-devil-in-america/|title=A Little Devil in America: Notes in Praise of Black Performance|magazine=Kirkus Reviews|date=December 22, 2020}} Abdurraqib himself describes A Little Devil in America as "a catalogue of excitements".{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/mar/12/from-soul-train-to-beyonce-the-joy-of-black-performance-in-america|title=From Soul Train to Beyoncé: the joy of black performance in America|first=Hanif|last=Abdurraqib|newspaper=The Guardian|date=March 12, 2021}} The book was awarded the 2022 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction.{{Cite news |last=Italie |first=Hillel |date=January 24, 2022 |title=Hanif Abdurraqib, Tom Lin receive Carnegie literary awards |work=Associated Press |url=https://apnews.com/a35cf5b0ec8cc0df505c1c8a2b8dffd1 |access-date=January 24, 2022}} It was also awarded the 2021 Gordon Burn Prize.{{Cite news |last=Flood |first=Alison |date=October 14, 2021 |title=Hanif Abdurraqib wins the Gordon Burn prize for A Little Devil in America |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/oct/14/hanif-abdurraqib-wins-the-gordon-burn-prize-for-a-little-devil-in-america |access-date=November 20, 2021}}

Abdurraqib's 2024 book, There's Always This Year: On Basketball and Ascension, was longlisted for the 2024 National Book Award for Nonfiction.{{cite news |title=The 2024 National Book Awards Longlist |url=https://www.newyorker.com/books/page-turner/2024-national-book-awards-longlist |access-date=13 September 2024 |work=The New Yorker |date=12 September 2024}}

In 2021, Abdurraqib launched a weekly podcast called "Object of Sound" with Sonos Radio. The music focused podcast features interviews and curated playlists by Abdurraqib and guests.{{Cite web |last=Turner |first=Rianna |title=Hanif Abdurraqib Launches Weekly Podcast 'Object Of Sound' With Sonos Radio |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/riannaturner/2021/01/29/hanif-abdurraqib-launches-weekly-podcast-object-of-sound-with-sonos-radio/ |access-date=2023-04-15 |website=Forbes |language=en}}

Abdurraqib created a miniseries called "Time Machine: The Score" for the podcast The 11th.{{cite web |last1=Quah |first1=Nicholas |title=Going Deep on a Classic Fugees Album (and 7 More Podcasts Worth Trying) |url=https://www.vulture.com/2021/09/new-podcasts-fugees-the-score.html |website=Vulture |access-date=22 June 2024 |language=en |date=23 September 2021}}

In 2017, Abdurraqib received an honorary degree in human ecology from the College of the Atlantic.{{Cite news|url=https://www.mdislander.com/maine-news/coa-commencement-set|title=COA commencement set|date=May 26, 2017|work=Mount Desert Islander|access-date=January 6, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=January 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180107060942/https://www.mdislander.com/maine-news/coa-commencement-set|url-status=live}} The Crown Ain't Worth Much was a finalist for the Eric Hoffer Book Award{{Cite web|url=http://www.hofferaward.com/Eric-Hoffer-Award-winners.html#poetry|title=Eric Hoffer Book Award Winners|website=www.hofferaward.com|language=en|access-date=January 7, 2018|archive-date=January 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063225/http://www.hofferaward.com/Eric-Hoffer-Award-winners.html#poetry|url-status=live}} and nominated for a 2017 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award.{{Cite web|url=http://www.hurstonwright.org/legacy-awards/|title=Hurston/Wright Foundation {{!}} Hurston/Wright Legacy Award|website=www.hurstonwright.org|language=en-US|access-date=January 7, 2018|archive-date=December 26, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171226014732/http://www.hurstonwright.org/legacy-awards/|url-status=live}} They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us was named a best book of 2017 by numerous outlets, including NPR,{{Cite news|url=https://apps.npr.org/best-books-2017/|title=NPR's Book Concierge: Our Guide To 2017's Great Reads|date=December 5, 2017|work=NPR.org|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en|archive-date=September 12, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180912142803/http://apps.npr.org/best-books-2017/|url-status=live}} Pitchfork,{{Cite web|url=https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/pitchforks-16-favorite-music-books-of-2017/?page=2?page=2?page=2?page=2?page=2?page=2|title=Pitchfork's 16 Favorite Music Books of 2017: They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us By Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib|last=Carroll|first=Tobias|date=November 21, 2017|website=Pitchfork|language=en|access-date=January 7, 2018|archive-date=January 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108120343/https://pitchfork.com/features/lists-and-guides/pitchforks-16-favorite-music-books-of-2017/?page=2%3Fpage%3D2%3Fpage%3D2%3Fpage%3D2%3Fpage%3D2%3Fpage%3D2|url-status=live}} the Los Angeles Review,{{Cite news|url=http://losangelesreview.org/lars-best-books-year/|title=LAR's The Best Books of the Year - The Los Angeles Review|date=December 15, 2017|work=The Los Angeles Review|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=January 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108120448/http://losangelesreview.org/lars-best-books-year/|url-status=live}} the Chicago Tribune,{{Cite news|url=http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-best-books-of-2017-20171212-photogallery.html|title=Best books of 2017: Fiction and nonfiction that moved literature forward|work=Chicago Tribune|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=January 5, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180105231606/http://www.chicagotribune.com/lifestyles/books/ct-best-books-of-2017-20171212-photogallery.html|url-status=live}} Stereogum,{{Cite news|url=https://www.stereogum.com/1974697/recommended-reading-2017/franchises/2017-in-review/|title=Recommended Reading 2017|last=Claymore|first=Gabriela Tully|date=December 15, 2017|work=Stereogum|access-date=January 7, 2018|archive-date=January 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063557/https://www.stereogum.com/1974697/recommended-reading-2017/franchises/2017-in-review/|url-status=live}} the National Post (Canada),{{Cite news|url=https://nationalpost.com/entertainment/books/np99-best-books-of-2017-vol-2|title=The NP99: The best books of the year, vol. 2 (74-50)|date=December 12, 2017|work=National Post|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en-US}} Paste,{{Cite news|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/12/the-20-best-nonfiction-books-of-2017.html?a=1|title=The 20 Best Nonfiction Books of 2017|last=Jackson|first=Frannie|date=December 13, 2017|work=Paste|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en|archive-date=January 8, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180108063551/https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2017/12/the-20-best-nonfiction-books-of-2017.html?a=1|url-status=live}} the CBC,{{Cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/books/the-best-international-nonfiction-of-2017-1.4453658|title=The best international nonfiction of 2017 {{!}} CBC Books|date=December 22, 2017|work=CBC|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=January 6, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180106033504/http://www.cbc.ca/books/the-best-international-nonfiction-of-2017-1.4453658|url-status=live}} and Esquire.{{Cite news|url=http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a52733/best-books-of-2017/|title=The 50 Best Books of 2017|last=Ledgerwood|first=Angela|date=December 14, 2017|work=Esquire|access-date=January 7, 2018|language=en-US|archive-date=October 3, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171003230807/http://www.esquire.com/entertainment/books/a52733/best-books-of-2017/|url-status=live}} Go Ahead in the Rain: Notes to A Tribe Called Quest was a finalist for the 2019 Kirkus Prize in Nonfiction and was longlisted for the 2019 National Book Award for Nonfiction.

In June 2021, Cbus Libraries announced they are commissioning The People's Mural of Columbus, which will feature Abdurraqib. The mural is set to be completed in August 2021 in the writer's hometown of Columbus, Ohio.{{Cite web|date=June 17, 2021|title=The People's Mural of Columbus|url=https://cbuslibraries.com/2021/06/17/peoples-mural-of-columbus/|access-date=June 21, 2021|website=Cbus Libraries|language=en-US}}

Abdurraqib was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2021 and a Windham-Campbell Prize in 2024.{{Cite web |last1=Stevens |first1=Matt |last2=Schuessler |first2=Jennifer |date=September 28, 2021 |title=MacArthur Foundation Announces 2021 'Genius' Grant Winners |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2021/09/28/arts/macarthur-foundation-announces-2021-genius-grant-winners.html |access-date=September 28, 2021 |website=The New York Times}}{{Cite news |last=Creamer |first=Ella |date=2024-04-02 |title=Eight writers win ‘freedom and time to write’ with $175,000 Windham-Campbell prizes |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/apr/02/eight-writers-win-freedom-and-time-to-write-with-175000-windham-campbell-prizes |access-date=2024-04-23 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}

Abdurraqib married a woman in 2014 and moved with her to New Haven, Connecticut, where she worked as a teacher.{{cite web |last1=Oller |first1=Julia |title=Hanif Abdurraqib's Columbus |url=https://www.columbusmonthly.com/story/lifestyle/2018/08/13/hanif-abdurraqib-s-columbus/11063667007/ |website=Columbus Monthly |access-date=November 11, 2024 |date=August 13, 2018}} Abdurraqib and his wife divorced in 2016. He returned to Columbus, Ohio, in 2017.{{Cite news|url=https://hazlitt.net/feature/year-living-alone|title=The Year in Living Alone|last=Abdurraqib|first=Hanif|date=December 8, 2017|work=Hazlitt|access-date=January 6, 2018|archive-date=January 7, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180107061020/https://hazlitt.net/feature/year-living-alone|url-status=live}}

{{Incomplete list |date=April 2025}}{{bots|deny=Citation bot}}

• Again I Wait For This To Pull Apart (as Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib; FreezeRay Press, 2015){{Cite web |title=FreezeRay Five: Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib |url=http://www.freezeraypoetry.com/1/post/2015/01/freezeray-five-hanif-willis-abdurraqib.html |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=FreezeRay: Poetry With A Pop |language=en}}
• The Crown Ain't Worth Much (as Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib; Button Poetry, 2016) ISBN 978-1-943735-04-4{{Cite web |title=Hanif Abdurraqib's writing vibrates with soul - North |url=https://digitaledition.chicagotribune.com/tribune/article_popover.aspx?guid=e99da8f7-d444-4b42-935b-966b13745067 |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=digitaledition.chicagotribune.com}}
• Vintage Sadness (as Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib; Big Lucks, 2017)
• They Can't Kill Us Until They Kill Us (Two Dollar Radio, 2017)
• Go Ahead in the Rain (University of Texas Press, 2019)
• A Fortune For Your Disaster (Tin House, 2019)
• A Little Devil in America (Random House, 2021)
• There's Always This Year (Random House, 2024){{Cite web |title=Terry Castle on Patricia Highsmith; New books by Hanif Abdurraqib |url=https://www.bookforum.com/papertrail/terry-castle-on-patricia-highsmith-new-books-by-hanif-abdurraqib-24407 |access-date=2023-02-21 |website=www.bookforum.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |title=There's Always This Year by Hanif Abdurraqib |url=https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/695817/theres-always-this-year-by-hanif-abdurraqib/ |access-date=August 29, 2023 |website=Penguin Random House |language=en-US}}
• Untitled essay collection (Random House, forthcoming)

• {{cite web |author=Abdurraqib, Hanif |title=The timeless pleasures of Dawoud Bey's street portraits |department=Photo Booth |work=The New Yorker |date=April 15, 2021 |url=https://www.newyorker.com/culture/photo-booth/the-timeless-pleasures-of-dawoud-beys-street-portraits }}Available on website only.

———————

;Bibliography notes

{{reflist|40em|group=lower-alpha}}

{{reflist}}

{{commonscat|Hanif Abdurraqib}}

• [http://www.abdurraqib.com/ Official site]
• [http://therumpus.net/2016/03/the-conversation-hanif-willis-abdurraqib-and-paul-tran/ The Rumpus: The Conversation Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib and Paul Tran]
• [https://soundcloud.com/thepoetrygods/episode-3-featuring-hanif-willis-abdurraqib The Poetry Gods: Episode 3 featuring Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib]
• [http://latenightlibrary.org/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-crown-aint-worth-much/ Late Night Library: Late Night Conversation with Kristin Maffei. Featured Guest Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160710074301/http://latenightlibrary.org/hanif-willis-abdurraqib-crown-aint-worth-much/ |date=July 10, 2016 }}
• [https://www.vulture.com/2018/10/excerpt-go-ahead-in-the-rain-notes-to-a-tribe-called-quest.html Excerpt] from Go Ahead in the Right published by New York magazine

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdurraqib, Hanif}}

Category:1983 births

Category:Living people

Category:21st-century African-American writers

Category:21st-century American essayists

Category:21st-century American male writers

Category:21st-century American non-fiction writers

Category:21st-century American poets

Category:African-American non-fiction writers

Category:African-American poets

Category:American male essayists

Category:American male non-fiction writers

Category:American music critics

Category:American music historians

Category:Butler University faculty

Category:Capital University alumni

Category:Historians from Ohio

Category:MacArthur Fellows

Category:The New Yorker people

Category:Poets from Ohio

Category:Writers from Columbus, Ohio