Dafina

A young female rap superstar takes on the misogyny of the music industry in the electrifying new novel by award-winning author, educator, and activist Aya de León. Radiant with her trademark blend of commercial fiction and social justice, this sexy, smart page-turner delivers activism wrapped in sheer entertainment with a high-drama plot, inclusive characters, and timely themes.

Stardom crashed like an avalanche onto this female rap artist. Now getting justice, real power, and true respect will be the hardest fight of her life...

20-year-old Deza was supposed to be just another hot girl emcee, but when a bonus track strikes a surprising social chord, it rockets her album to the top of the charts--and her record label promotes her to headline their first-ever all-female national tour. As Deza attempts to live up to her new reputation, her inexperience generates tour drama. And when her female DJ quits, the label replaces her with the last thing Deza needs: the sexy guy DJ she flirted with at a club.

But in battling to prove she deserves her success and embracing her power as an activist for Black Lives, Deza starts to feel she can face anything that comes her way--until her label prepares to undermine the all-female lineup in the name of mega-profits.

Now, up against brutal industry misogyny and corporate big money, Deza will need the drive of that scrappy emcee from the South Side of Chicago and the bulletproof cool of a seasoned music professional if she wants to claim a space of respect in hip hop, not just for herself, but for everyone and everything she believes in...

Aya De León is a writer, activist, educator, spoken word poet and author of the award-winning Justice Hustlers series. She teaches creative writing in the African American Studies Department at UC Berkeley and is an alumna of Cave Canem, VONA, and Harvard University. She is a winner of the International Latino Book Award, a three-time winner of the Independent Publisher Awards, and her extensive writing credits include Guernica, Essence(R), Electric Lit, Ebony, Huffington Post, VICE, Ploughshares, Woman’s Day, and Bitch magazine, among many other websites and publications. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and is active in the climate justice movement and the Movement for Black Lives. She can be found online at AyadeLeon.com.