- Film Review
- Reviewed By Jeremy Aspinall
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4 out of 5
Rap pioneer Ice-T is our guide for this fascinating documentary about a controversial form of music that still struggles to receive its proper due. Just don't expect a film littered with music videos extolling the excesses of guns, gangsters and bling (though the language is salty, to say the least). Ice-T's mission (as co-director and interviewer) is to explore the craft, skill and mechanics of rapping, to get behind the usual bluster, and in this he's aided by anyone who is anyone in the rapping firmament - Eminem, Dr Dre, Snoop Dogg, Ice Cube and Public Enemy's Chuck D, to name but a few. Ice-T himself is a refreshingly laid-back interviewer, as he travels across the USA extracting humorous and insightful anecdotes from his stellar cast of urban rhymers. There's a moment when one rapper bemoans the fact that jazz and blues have more respect, but this terrific piece of work proves rap is an art form that's every bit as deserving.
Plot Summary
Documentary in which Ice-T presents a guide to the history of rap music, examining how the genre developed as it rose to mainstream popularity and taking an in-depth look at performance techniques. Featuring interviews with artists including Snoop Dogg, Dr Dre, Eminem and Mos Def, who reveal their personal approach to performing.
Cast and crew
Cast
- Ice-T
- Ice-T
- Ice Cube
- Ice Cube
- Eminem
- Eminem
- Africa Bambaataa
- Africa Bambaataa
- Snoop Dogg
- Snoop Dogg
- Dr Dre
- Dr Dre
- KRS-One
- KRS-One
- Kanye West
- Kanye West
- Common
- Common
- Chuck D
- Chuck D
- Redman
- Redman
- Q-Tip
- Q-Tip
Crew
- Director
- Ice-T
- Director
- Andy Baybutt
- Categories
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Documentary
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Music
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