Hip Hop Culture

The feel of hip hop was based on sampling the drum breaks of funk records. The documentary Scratch gave a good view of this from the turntablists point of view, and PBS' Copyright Criminals used production crew The Bomb Squad as an example of this process in classic Hip-Hop. I decided it would be beneficial to get some insight into the early development of this style and the cultural identify that surrounded it. The following documentaries were excellent:

WU: The Story of the Wu Tang Clan

This film explores the development of the rap scene in Staton Island and the individual talent that came together to form the Wu Tang Clan. It charts their expansion into the biggest rap crew ever, all the while showing how Hip-hop as a whole had evolved over this time. It provides a really genuine perspective, using interviews with the members, archive footage as well as friends and family to give an insight into their world.

Dave Chappelle's Block Party



A much more light-hearted and contemporary hip-hop film. In this, comedian Dave Chappelle creates a block party in his hometown, inviting huge artists like Mos Def and Talib Kweli (Black Star), Common, Kanye West, Erikah Badu, Dead Prez, John Legend, Jill Scott and the Fugees. It is a film born of a real love of the genre and the passion of the artists and fans.