Janelle Monae's The ArchAndroid

- Blurb -

In Janelle Monae' s full-length debut, the science fiction concept album The ArchAndroid, the android Cindi Mayweather is on the run from the authorities for the crime of loving a human. Living in 28th century Metropolis, Cindi fights for survival, soon realizing that she is in fact the prophesied ArchAndroid, a robot messiah meant to liberate the masses and lead them toward a wonderland where all can be free. Taking into account the literary merit of Monae' s astounding multimedia body of work, the political relevance of the science fictional themes and aesthetics she explores, and her role as an Atlanta-based pop cultural juggernaut, this book explores the lavish world building of Cindi' s story, and the many literary, cinematic, and musical influences brought together to create it. Throughout, a history of Monae' s move to Atlanta, her signing with Bad Boy Records, and the trials of developing a full-length concept album in an industry devoted to the production of marketable singles can be found, charting the artist' s own rise to power. The stories of Monae and of Cindi are inextricably entwined, each making the other more compelling, fantastical, and deeply felt.