On Loop - Black Sonic Politics in Oakland

"A pathbreaking exploration of the politics of sound, Alex Werth's On Loop reveals a dimension of power that's as important as it is invisible. Remixing fields and methods, we get to hear the frequencies of the Black freedom struggle emerge from the noise of Oakland's wrenching transformation."--Alexis Madrigal, author of The Pacific Circuit: A Globalized Account of the Battle for the Soul of an American City and cohost of KQED's Forum

"The frequencies of On Loop are 'loud and proud, ' revealing the complex cultural and political history of Oakland's Black sounds. Werth explores how these forms of aesthetic speech nurture the social movements of a community's will to realize a just city. It is a must-read on the audible waves of emancipation that enliven Oakland, past and present, and in turn other American cities."--Roberto Bedoya, writer and former Cultural Affairs Manager for the City of Oakland

"Alex Werth's On Loop is a formidable and breathtaking look at the intersection of Black sonic culture, spatial politics, and urban governance in an iconic city whose significance in American cultural geography and history has long been ignored. Werth offers us a crucial account of Oakland's dynamic evolution to foreground the indispensability of Black cultural production in the making of the Town."--Brandi Thompson Summers, author of Black in Place: The Spatial Aesthetics of Race in a Post-Chocolate City

About the author

Alex Werth is a geographer, DJ, and housing justice advocate.

Product details

• Authors: Alex Werth
• Publisher: University Of California Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Release: 21.10.2025
• EAN: 9780520416079
• ISBN: 978-0-520-41607-9
• No. of pages: 446
• Subjects: Natural sciences, medicine, IT, technology > Geosciences > Geography; Music, History: specific events & topics, California, HISTORY / Historical Geography, MUSIC / Genres & Styles / Rap & Hip Hop, History of Music, Local History, Urban communities, Black & Asian Studies, Historical Geography, Relating to African American / Black American people