Dan Charnas

Charnas on a panel at the 2010 Brooklyn Book Festival with Kristin Hersh.

Daniel Louis Charnas (born August 30, 1967) is an American author, radio host and record company executive. He is considered to have played a role in the creation of hip-hop journalism.

A native of New York City, Charnas graduated with honors from Boston University in 1989 with a bachelor's degree in communications. In 2007, Charnas earned a master's degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. His master's thesis was titled Shocked: Birthright Unplugged challenges Birthright Israel in an epic battle for the hearts and minds of American Jews.

As a radio personality, Charnas hosted a segment on KPWR in Los Angeles. As a journalist he was a writer for the hip-hop magazine The Source. He became a talent scout for Profile Records and later ran the rap division of American Recordings in a joint venture with Warner Bros. Records.

In 2010 he wrote the book The Big Payback about the history of the hip-hop business.

In 2022 his book Dilla Time, on the life and works of hip-hop producer J Dilla, was published.

Charnas is an associate professor at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University and has been a thesis advisor at the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

Charnas received the Virgil Thomson Award for Outstanding Music Criticism from the ASCAP Foundation in 2025.

References

  1. 1 2 "GRADUATION: 2007 Award Winners". The Daily Plan-it / Dean of Students Blog, Columbia J-school. Columbia University School of Journalism. Archived from the original on October 16, 2007. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  2. ↑ @dancharnas (30 August 2011). "The bestest birthday present you can give this kid? Follow me! @dancharnas" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. 1 2 "About Dan Charnas". DanCharnas.com. 22 October 2010. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  4. ↑ Faraone, Chris (October 24, 2012). "In the Early Days of Rap Music, One COM Student Fanned a Cultural Spark that Caught Fire Campus-wide". Boston University. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  5. ↑ "Journalism Library: 2007 Master's Projects". Columbia University Library. Retrieved April 30, 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 Global Grind staff (January 5, 2011). "Dan Charnas On The Biggest Deals In Hip-Hop History, & Why Drake Could've Done Better". Global Grind.
  7. 1 2 3 Aaron Leitko (January 16, 2011). "The brains behind the bling-bling". The Washington Post.
  8. ↑ Madrigal, Alexis (4 February 2022). "The Genius of Hip-Hop Producer J Dilla Shines in New Book 'Dilla Time' by Dan Charna". KQED. Retrieved 5 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "Dan Charnas - Professor - Clive Davis Institute - NYU Tisch Music". tisch.nyu.edu.
  10. ↑ "2013 Masters's Projects | Columbia University Libraries". library.columbia.edu.
  11. ↑ "CDI Professor Dan Charnas Wins The Virgil Thomson Award for Outstanding Music Criticism". NYU Tisch School of the Arts. October 31, 2025. Retrieved October 31, 2025.