WE WERE HERE: A History of Black People and Alternative Music
STEPHANIE PHILLIPS
Out 27 August 2026
A reclamation of rock’n’roll for the Black artists who tore up and re-wrote its rules, by musician, arts and culture journalist and die-hard alternative music superfan, Stephanie Phillips.
We Were Here promises to rip up our received history of rock ’n’ roll and alternative music and repopulate it with the extraordinary Black artists and influential figures who helped steer its course from
the 1930s to the present day, including vital figures Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Little Richard, Jimi Hendrix, Tina Turner, Betty Davis, Poly Styrene, Bad Brains and beyond.
As well as reflecting on why Black people have continued to be drawn to alternative music despite their ongoing ostracization from it by the white mainstream industry, Phillips argues that there would be no alternative music without Black artists, and that its future lies in the hands of Gen Z Black musicians experimenting with the boundaries of what punk, metal, hardcore and indie could be.
Praise for We Were Here:
‘An engaging, loving ode to the Black artists who’ve made life changing, genre bending music but were sidelined by racism and white rockstar narratives . . . A joyous, fascinating read and an absolute must have for every music fan, maker or history buff’
– Kathleen Hanna
‘A true education. This should be compulsory reading for anyone wanting the origin story as it’s never been told before . . . She writes with integrity, authority and a real passion that is infectious’
– Simon Raymonde
‘An entirely essential, thrillingly readable, discourse . . . Reads as a passionate dream of truthful acknowledgement and of communitarian alliance replete with joy, understanding and glorious noise.’
– Thurston Moore
‘Stephanie Phillips has cracked open the ‘culture’ in this excellent book & let the light in’
– Pauline Black
‘While Blackness is a lived experience, it can also become a straitjacket, quite often limiting how we’re perceived, and how we perceive each other. The charting of these fault-lines between our individual selves and the world, as Phillips defines so admirably, is of paramount importance. At its heart a redefinition of who shaped and influenced the birth of modern music, yet also a reclamation of birthright for so many, We Were Here is breathtakingly expansive and in places heartbreakingly revealing. Lost art and recollected glories haunt these pages. Phillips’ writing is charged and passionate, wise and probing, a welcome balm for the myriad of kindred souls among us, a celebratory and joyful read.’
– Courttia Newland
‘We Were Here is a fascinating deep dive of a read uncovering the true Black history behind alternative music culture, finally giving Black musicians, who played pivotal roles in the genre, their flowers. Tracing over a century of recorded music with reverence and joy, Stephanie Phillips creates a space for Black weirdos like myself from all over the globe to feel pride in the breadth and the power of Black creativity.’
– Skin
‘I was always told history was written by the victors. However, if you’re around for long enough, you may just see another version of events championed. ‘We Were Here’ by Stephanie Phillips is the story of Black ’n’ Roll and I was there!’
– Rhoda Dakar
Stephanie Phillips 