GKarsEye
Regular
Dave Chappelle\'s Block Party
Fans of Dave Chappelle probably are aware of his movie that came out to the theaters today, which is really more of a concert documentary.
The premise here is that he throws a "block party," presented as short-notice concert, in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY (immortalised in Spike Lee's film "Do the Right Thing").
The acts are all hip-hop, what some call "progressive" hip-hop, in that they are not MTV darlings or thug-life cookie-cutter acts. The artists are personal friends of Chappelle and musicians he admires, including The Roots, Erykha Badu, Mos Def, Common, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, Big Daddy Kane, relatively new hip-hop/R&B sensation Jill Scott, and black-power political rappers Dead Prez.
Chappelle horses around in between, including sweet segments where he invites people from his hometown in Ohio to come out of the show, including an excited all-black marching band from a local college.
The general feel of the film and the concert is celebrating their culture while being inclusive. Even people who don't like rap for various reasons ("my hearing is too bad to hear the lyrics," "too many bad words") are accepted and accepting.
Anyone who accepts hip-hop as a vital musical form, or is at least open to the possibility, will enjoy this immensely. I left the theater just feeling really, really happy.
Fans of Dave Chappelle probably are aware of his movie that came out to the theaters today, which is really more of a concert documentary.
The premise here is that he throws a "block party," presented as short-notice concert, in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, NY (immortalised in Spike Lee's film "Do the Right Thing").
The acts are all hip-hop, what some call "progressive" hip-hop, in that they are not MTV darlings or thug-life cookie-cutter acts. The artists are personal friends of Chappelle and musicians he admires, including The Roots, Erykha Badu, Mos Def, Common, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, Big Daddy Kane, relatively new hip-hop/R&B sensation Jill Scott, and black-power political rappers Dead Prez.
Chappelle horses around in between, including sweet segments where he invites people from his hometown in Ohio to come out of the show, including an excited all-black marching band from a local college.
The general feel of the film and the concert is celebrating their culture while being inclusive. Even people who don't like rap for various reasons ("my hearing is too bad to hear the lyrics," "too many bad words") are accepted and accepting.
Anyone who accepts hip-hop as a vital musical form, or is at least open to the possibility, will enjoy this immensely. I left the theater just feeling really, really happy.