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It Starts with Anger
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Published on Aug 04, 2026 | 9 Hours 39 Minutes
From the award-winning filmmaker and graphic novelist comes the untold origin story of the multimillion-dollar AFROPUNK Festival—beginning not with big stages or brand sponsorship, but with one Black kid’s search for belonging in the nineties New York City punk scene
“A memoir that belongs in the canon of punk history. . . . Thrilling.” —Kathleen Hanna, author of Rebel Girl
“Vital. . . . Should live in the archives as both a corrective to misunderstood history, and a manifesto for a path forward.” —Hanif Abdurraqib, author of A Little Devil in America
In 1991, fifteen-year-old James Spooner arrives in the West Village, hopeful that he’s finally escaped the extremist racism of his Southern California desert town, yet unsure what New York City will make of a tartan-plaid-and-leather-clad biracial kid with a mohawk. In the city’s legendary rock clubs, squats, and DIY art spaces, he finds his way to creating zines, starting a record label, and promoting parties, while falling further in love with punk rock’s distorted guitars and politically progressive lyrics. Still, he must navigate the hostile bigotry of mainstream society, as well as a largely white underground conspicuously silent on issues of race.
Intent on carving out a space for young, Black, politically radical punk rockers like himself, Spooner undertakes a whirlwind tour of the country, collecting the stories that will become his acclaimed documentary, Afro-Punk, and eventually lead to the wildly successful music festival of the same name. But what begins as a way to chronicle the joys and heartaches of being Black and punk rock soon spirals into a multimillion-dollar corporate endeavor. Spooner is forced to ask himself: In setting out to galvanize an underground movement, has he in fact given rise to the least punk rock thing of all—a brand?
Illustrated with a vibrant mix of comics, spot art, and punk ephemera throughout, It Starts with Anger is at once a coming-of-age story about found family, a compelling capitalist cautionary tale, and a raucous celebration of the indelible, rebellious spirit of Black punks.
* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF that contains selected comics drawn by the author and photos from the book.
“A memoir that belongs in the canon of punk history. . . . Thrilling.” —Kathleen Hanna, author of Rebel Girl
“Vital. . . . Should live in the archives as both a corrective to misunderstood history, and a manifesto for a path forward.” —Hanif Abdurraqib, author of A Little Devil in America
In 1991, fifteen-year-old James Spooner arrives in the West Village, hopeful that he’s finally escaped the extremist racism of his Southern California desert town, yet unsure what New York City will make of a tartan-plaid-and-leather-clad biracial kid with a mohawk. In the city’s legendary rock clubs, squats, and DIY art spaces, he finds his way to creating zines, starting a record label, and promoting parties, while falling further in love with punk rock’s distorted guitars and politically progressive lyrics. Still, he must navigate the hostile bigotry of mainstream society, as well as a largely white underground conspicuously silent on issues of race.
Intent on carving out a space for young, Black, politically radical punk rockers like himself, Spooner undertakes a whirlwind tour of the country, collecting the stories that will become his acclaimed documentary, Afro-Punk, and eventually lead to the wildly successful music festival of the same name. But what begins as a way to chronicle the joys and heartaches of being Black and punk rock soon spirals into a multimillion-dollar corporate endeavor. Spooner is forced to ask himself: In setting out to galvanize an underground movement, has he in fact given rise to the least punk rock thing of all—a brand?
Illustrated with a vibrant mix of comics, spot art, and punk ephemera throughout, It Starts with Anger is at once a coming-of-age story about found family, a compelling capitalist cautionary tale, and a raucous celebration of the indelible, rebellious spirit of Black punks.
* This audiobook edition includes a downloadable PDF that contains selected comics drawn by the author and photos from the book.
Author
James Spooner
James Spooner is an accomplished tattoo artist, illustrator, and filmmaker. Director of the seminal documentary Afro-Punk and co-founder of the AFROPUNK Festival, he is the author and illustrator of the award-winning graphic novel The High Desert, co-editor of the anthology Black Punk Now, and an ongoing guest curator for museums and libraries across the country.
Learn More about James Spooner
