HipHopBattle.com: Hip Hop 4 Life (2001)

User Rating:

8.1/10   

Director:

David Velo Stewart

Writer:

David Velo Stewart (writer)

Genre:

Comedy | Drama | Romance

Plot:

As Devon prepares for the hiphop battle that will make or break him as an MC his personal relationships feel the effect.

Plot Keywords:

Hip Hop | Performance Poetry | Social Consciousness | Prop Test | Rap

Cast

George Baynard Jr.	...	Terrence
Michael Bell Sr.	...	Mr. Lincoln (Devon's Father)
Blacknile	...	John
Da Boogie Man	...	Kenny
D'Epitome	...	Roger
EbonyFaith	...	Rochelle
Suave Gotti	...	Smoke
Danielle Green	...	Jessica
Cassandra Hines	...	Anita
Kem Machete	...	Mackie
Q-Nice	...	Devon
Jabazz Snipes	...	Hydro (emcee)
Tragedy Styles	...	Street Person

Also Known As:

HipHopBattle.com: Hip Hop for Life (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sensuality, violence, language and drug content.

Runtime:

98 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:PG-13

Filming Locations:

Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Company:

Velocity Productions Ltd.

Quotes:

Kenny: There's a way to do it man and I'm not asking you to talk to the crowd. I'm asking you to, like, be at one with 'em. Show 'em your feminine side.
Devon: Hold on, wait a minute. Feminine side? Hold on, whoa!
Kenny: Yeah, your feminine side.
Devon: Hold on, now if you expect me to walk around on a stage like RuPaul or something like that, then you got another thing (interrupted by Kenny)
Kenny: Ti-ti-time out. Boy slow down. I'm talking about the side of you man that gives birth!
Devon: What?
Kenny: Follow me. The part of you that gives birth to creativity...

For Hiphoppers and Beboppers

Director David Velo Stewart's debut film is a documentary-styled fictional account of a young rapper named Devon. Our young protagonist is an eloquent word smith who is at a crossroads: Does he finish college as his dream-crushing father wishes him to do or does he immediately pursue his dream of becoming a master MC? In the midst of his quest for stardom, he is confronted by friends and associates, all of whom have an assortment of problems. And he must contend with a warm, but strained, romantic relationship with a young woman who requires more time than he can give.

In spite of this film's title, this is no ordinary "Rap" movie. For movie goers under the age of 30, this film should more than sate their delight in the genre. For movie goers of the R&B, Motown, and Jazz generation, it will come as a refreshing surprise that there is a burgeoning Rap scene that seeks to elevate this form to high art. Devon (portrayed by newcomer Q-Nice) raises the bar on what Rap is and what it can become. With a rare symbiosis of performance poetry, Bebop rhythms, and socio-political commentary, Q-Nice as Devon brings to mind vivid memories of Miles Davis's minimalist Bebop and the activism-cum-poetry of "The Last Poets"; the verbal pyrotechnics of the "Prop" tests alone make this film worth the viewing!

Made on a shoestring budget with a cast of largely unknown talent, Stewart's debut film manages to pull off what few films of this genre have done: satisfy both a young and old audience. Showcasing the largely unknown talents of Cleveland, Ohio's burgeoning and socially conscious Rap scene, he avoids the misogyny and profanity that has become the studio-sanctioned formula for Rap and films of this genre. With equal parts of romance, humor and conflict, Stewart "keeps it real" without descending into Walt Disney territory. The performers featured in this work will send their record-selling Rap contemporaries "Back to School". Redefining what Rap and Hip Hop is, HipHopBattle.Com: Hip Hop 4 Life appeases the most discriminating film and musical tastes and has the capacity for silencing Rap's harshest critics.