Nerdcore Rising (2008)

Hilariously entertaining, NERDCORE RISING introduces a new wave of hip-hop to the world called "Nerdcore" where computer obsesses geeks bust rhymes about the hard knock life of nerdom. The ... See full summary »

Directors:

Negin Farsad, Kimmy Gatewood (co-director) (as Kim Gatewood)

Stars:

Damian Hess, Gaby Alter, Beefy

Cast

Credited cast:
Damian Hess	...	Himself
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Gaby Alter	...	Himself
Beefy	...	Himself
Jello Biafra	...	Himself
Sturgis Cuningham	...	Himself
Sumana Harihareswara
J-Live	...	Himself
Tony Moore	...	Himself
Andrew Nielsen	...	Himself
Nursehella	...	Herself
Brandon Patton	...	Himself
Prince Paul	...	Himself
Doctor Popular	...	Himself
Brian Posehn	...	Himself
Eric Wagoner	...	Himself

Storyline

Hilariously entertaining, NERDCORE RISING introduces a new wave of hip-hop to the world called "Nerdcore" where computer obsesses geeks bust rhymes about the hard knock life of nerdom. The gut-busting comedy follows MC Frontalot, the "Godfather of Nerdcore" on his first national tour where the roots of the genre, the dorky complexities of its artists, and one MC's fight for nerd stardom is revealed.

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Plot Keywords:

nerdcore | hip hop | white rapper | rap | rapping | 

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Genres:

Documentary | Music

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

9 March 2008 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Vaguely Qualified Productions

Technical Specs

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.78 : 1

Did You Know?

Quotes

Prince Paul: The whole Nerdcore thing, I think what's cool about that is, it's - whoever is doing it is actually being honest and quote-unquote "keeping it real" to themselves, so I mean you can't beat that. To me that's true hip-hop.

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Soundtracks

Swingin
Written & Performed by Gaby Alter

User Reviews

Deserves a good rap

"Nerdcore Rising" is quite a strong documentary that weaves between the subjects of MC Frontalot (AKA Damian offstage) and his band on their first tour, and of Nerdcore Hiphop, the musical genre he seems to have acquired a modicum of renown for having invented. That second subject, despite being what might be called a niche genre, is a fairly broad one as far as reportage might go, but a certain amount of understanding is necessary in order to follow the adventures of Frontalot and his crew. To that end the interview subjects are well chosen and thoughtful on the whole, including other Nerdcore rappers, the always-interesting and impossibly clever comic musician "Weird" Al Yankovic, people from the so-called mainstream rap industry, and people who have just seen MC Frontalot shows.

The most interest and the most genuine laughs, however, come from the character study portraits of Frontalot and friends, achieved through roving-cameraman footage from the tour and interviews done apparently later. There's some detectable influence of reality television in the dwelling on a lost keyboard component and some other elements, but that can't derail the picture of a group of truly funny and likable-seeming people.

The film avoids the trap of either condemning or uncritically praising the genre whose exponents it documents, but rather illuminates it and lets it speak for itself, giving due time both to critics who have called it racist and to the almost religious sense of belonging it seems to bestow on some of those who place themselves in the "nerd" or "geek" camps.

The film is designed very well, with some nice graphics work complimenting the content, especially in the musical scenes, where Fronalot's work is given a respectful and flattering venue. In all a very entertaining and well made documentary that handles an interesting subject well.