Product Description

“Even though I’ve tried to wear glass slippers, somebody has deliberately knocked them off my feet. Because of that, I have walked the earth emotionally barefoot, and expressed my lack of self-esteem and rage in ways that clouded my judgment. I was a participant in a lot of drama. Didn’t mean to be . . . it was never my intention.”

So confesses Tarsha Jones, host of New York’s popular radio show Miss Jones in the Morning. “Jonesy,” as she’s known to her fans, captivates millions of Hot 97 listeners with her daily dish on hip-hop and rap celebrity. But within these pages are the juicy scandals that even this no-holds-barred DJ has kept off the airwaves. For the first time, Jones reveals everything–from candid stories of her early singing career under Doug E. Fresh’s wing (and between his sheets) to a wild affair with Busta Rhymes; from bitter feuds with Wendy Williams and shock jocks Star and Buc Wild to friendships with Patti LaBelle and Isaac Hayes; from collaborations with Fat Joe and Big Pun all the way to catfights with Christina Milian and Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles. Jones lets it all hang out and doesn’t tiptoe around anyone’s feelings–including her own.

Beginning with her volatile upbringing as the child of alcoholic parents and the target of bullying peers, Jones takes us on a journey of self-exploration, recounting how she survived abusive relationships, twisted coworkers, and backstabbing bosses to ultimately rise through the radio ranks and make it to the top of her game. But more than just a tell-all tale, this inspirational memoir is a testament to the struggles of a black woman trying to succeed in a white male-dominated industry, where the sharks never stop circling no matter how much you achieve. For those who love steamy entertainment gossip, admire coming-of-age chronicles of resilience, or just like to see emperors (and moguls) without clothes, so to speak, the pages will fly. Even devoted listeners who think they already know radio’s rowdiest diva will have to ask themselves . . . Have You Met Miss Jones?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #639034 in Books
• Published on: 2007-07-10
• Released on: 2007-07-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Jones, who is New York's hip-hop Hot 97-FM morning DJ, traces her rocky trajectory from the Astoria projects to fame in dishy, inelegant detail. The early years were tough for Jones, born to an epileptic mother who divorced Jones's father early on, remarried periodically, but taught her daughter how to fight and prodded her singing career. Jones attended Manhattan's prestigious High School of Music and Art with Ricky Walters, aka MC Slick Rick, and attended Syracuse University. She was introduced to rapper Doug E. Fresh, who became instrumental in igniting Jones's early singing career in the early 1990s; toured with Fresh's Get Fresh Crew; romanced hip-hop superstar Busta Rhymes; recorded the song Two Way Street then was asked to join Ed Lover and Dr. Dre on their Hot 97 morning show. Although she considered herself a singer first, being a DJ became her bread and butter. Jones has her axes in work and love to grind, and it makes for cluttered, pedestrian reading. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

This book blew like a meth addicted skank
Ya know...I really do expect BETTER details from a tell-all memoir.

Before I start, I would like to know if it's possible for the folks who manage this site to allow us to rate a book 0? This book doesn't even deserve the honor and the privilege of being rated a "1".

Tarsha Jones' book is a joke, plain and simple. It makes Karrine Steffan's "autobiography" a true work of art.

This DJ chick goes on and on about how Doug E Fresh dogs her out, how Busta Rhymes LITERALLY busted her out (sexually) because of how WELL ENDOWED he was...oh and how quick he was in the sack..and how selfish he was afterwards...*sigh*, how Allen Iverson tried to get a piece, how a rival DJ at her radio station had it out for her, how her babydaddy wouldn't act right...oh woe is her! Playing the victim MUST be the modus operandi for these female human semen receptacles. Blame everyone else for dogging them but not taking responsiblity for the piss poor decisions they make.

My thing about these "true" memoirs is this: Why the hell do these chicks keep making bad decision after bad decision? Why write about it? Surely they're not doing this to help out the next young girl or for "release therapy" and ...don't these chicks have EDITORS to spellcheck before publishing? This book was so poorly written I would have guessed an 11 year old penned it. Also, the pics. I mean...isn't Ms. Jones OBESE? Why all the old pics of her? Show the new ones, with those elephantine sized hamhocks for thighs rubbing against one another or that quadruple chin. Show those. Why didn't she mention how she is OBSESSED with Beyonce Knowles? I mean the chick HAS to have posters with dart holes in them plastered all over her house. Why not mention that? Why not mention how JEALOUS she is of RnB singers who made it big while her one little single hardly got any fan fare. Oh I see...because she couldn't be the VICTIM. Typical.

THANK God I didn't plop down one red cent to buy this crap. I would have been more entertained eating a cabbage/collard green cocktail and listening to my butt bellow out a trumpet-like symphony in an crowded elevator.

It would have been less painful too.

Waste Of Eye Sight
I was HIGHLY disappointed in this book, as much as Miss Jones talks about people on a day to day basis, she couldn't come any better then this??? The vocabulary and wording in this book can be read by a first grader with attention deficit disorder. As they would be the only ones to understand her inconsistent thoughts about nothing in particular or importance.


How is it that you have a career in broadcasting, reporting news and events, yet have difficulty sticking to a single thought in your own book?? Jones jumped from one period in her life to another then right back to what she was originally talking about. Confused.... you should be that's how the entire book was written.

As she talk's about other peoples insecurites and what they've failed to accomplish, when 80% of this book was dedicated to people's so called misconceptions of her. I'm sure miss OHH WELLLL has heard the saying "NEVER DEFEND A LIE". Yet this book was dedicated to defending the lies spread to discredit her. If it weren't true why focus so much attention on it???

Miss "OH WELLLL" focused so much on star and wendy, leaves one to ask themself why are you STILL mad, if you have the #1 morning show? Wendy is in a different time slot, and star did himself in over a year ago. If you feel you are on top of your game and you are unstoppable, why feel the need to air one sided opinions, as you hopelessly brag about your unstable attempts at singing, and radio?

This book better helped me understand why Miss Jones always down plays people in the morning with her constant negativity. She has nothing to be happy about in her own life. Out of all you've been through with men dogging you out and taking advantage of your low self esteem and worth. A singing career that never blossomed, and the career you've stumbled upon in radio. What truly was the point in writing this book?. It's as if Miss Jones felt the need to hear yourself speak, what no one would care to listen too during her morning show.

Huh?
The two star rating I'm giving this book is even generous. Once again, the plot is the same as with most "tell all" books by these former groupies who love to coin themselves as anything but.

Tarsha Jones was a simple "star effer" (pardon my french) who hoped to gain a music career from her activities. Loaded with the hope that she would be a star one day, she rode the coat tails of these men and became bitter when the plan didn't pan out as planned. In fact like Karrine Stephens author of "Confessions of a Video Vixen" Jones' account of the affairs she has with these stars seem very delusional and once sided.

I'm not sure how one could have percieved love or the possibility of committment from men like Doug E. Fresh and Busta Rhymes based on their actions. Based on her side Doug E. basically swept her off her feet at one point, bought her a car, put her up in an apartment and "promised" to be with her. While he recently impregnated BOTH of his "babies mommas."

I believe there was certainly more to the story and more than likely she was being kept in return for basic sexual favors and fantasies. Doug had the means and Jones had the need.

The relationship with Busta sounds a bit sketchy in my opinion as well. I'm not quite sure how one could be surprised or hurt that a man who prefered to pretend he didn't know you in public wouldn't think enough of you to offer you more than just a bite of the sandwhich that he made for himself after sex. Both men discarded Jones as they pleased because the simple fact is that she was expendable. All groupies are. Is that surprising? Well...Newsflash! Here on earth where most of us reside, this is common knowledge Miss Jones :)

While I found most of the book to be somewhat interesting, the material was very disorganized and seemed to jump very quickly to unrelated topics at any given moment.

Her criticisms of stars such as Mary J. Blige and Monica fell on deaf ears with me. After blasting Mary for sounding "depressed" and Monica for trying to appeal to the "youngins" with her new single (Every time the beat drops).

Tarsha goes on to defend her right to dislike any song she wants toward the end of the hodge podge of pages that mimick the adult version of a real novel.

Frankly I believe the industry knew her singing ability was "average" at best. The music industry along with fans of R&B had the right to dislike her songs. Weak sales and constant drops from labels proves this.

Throughout the book she peppers paragraphs with blame, weakly defending the reasons her music career never took off. After reading these excuses throughout the book, I decided to research the song she nearly forced down the readers throat as being a "hit." The name of the song was (Where I Want To Be Boy). While listening I took into account that the song was made in the 90's so the arrangement of the song was understandably primative compared to today's studio techniques. Even with that, Tarsha was weak and average.

While I personally make no serious judgements on the life Tarsha Jones AKA "Miss Jones" has made for herself I believe she is a bitter former groupie who was lucky that someone though enough of her to open the door even a crack so she could get her foot in the door.