A group of men from various states is meeting monthly to lead a book club in honor of Nipsey Hussle.

The Marathon Book Club, as it's known, includes 74 Black men and two Latinos who meet in Oakland, New York, Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles to discuss books that motivated the late rapper and entrepreneur.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the men formed the chapter after seeing Hussle's list of favorite books, which was compiled by a 31-year-old fan from Wisconsin and posted on the internet.

The list includes a book titled The Spook Who Sat by the Door, the story of a former gang member named Daniel Freeman who becomes the first Black CIA officer before quitting the agency to lead a movement against the American government. Speaking with the Los Angeles Times, the men said they can relate with the story because they know what it’s like to be the only Black person in a room full of white people.

R.J. Harris, one of the men in the book club, said he understands Freeman, who quit his job because it didn't satisfy his soul. Harris said he was working as a sports marketer with a professional sports teams before he quit and started his own tech company. 

“My goals and objectives couldn’t be fulfilled in those spaces,” Harris told the Los Angeles Times. “I didn’t feel full.”

In a 2018 interview with The Breakfast Club, Hussle said he was planning to adopt the book’s name for his next album. However, the artist wasn't able to make the album before he was shot and killed last year. Much like Freeman, who rebelled against the CIA because he didn't want to be their token Black man, Hussle said he had a similar goal for the music industry. 

"In terms of hip-hop, you think of the message that they embrace, I feel parallel with the power structure. They got prescribed personas they expect from us. I feel like the way [Freeman] used they intentions against them was one of my underlining strategies," the rapper said in the interview. "I don't wanna go blow nothing up like he did, but in terms of being able to mobilize his homies to a higher cause, that's something I feel like we all have to do."

Hussle's longtime lover, Lauren London, spoke with the Los Angeles Times and expressed the rapper's love for books.

“We read a lot of books together,” she said. “We inspired each other to be better versions of ourselves. He was a truth seeker and a truth speaker.”

The Marathon Book Club's list also includes a book titled 3 Magic Words. Describing the book in an interview with Complex, Hussle said, “It’s about the power of the mind. It’s about the projection of your thoughts into reality.”  

Hussle, born Ermias Joseph Asghedom, was shot and killed on March 31 in front of his Marathon Clothing store in Los Angeles at 33 years old.

“You’ve encouraged me and inspired me to reach higher. I’ve learned so much about myself with you,” London said of Hussle during his memorial. “You’ve been my turn up and my church. I wouldn’t want to go through this journey with anyone but you.”

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