Commissions

Greenlit: Hip-Hop Evolution, HBO Canada

Hip-Hop Evolution (4 x 60′) – Docuseries that explores the origins of the genre that dominates popular music culture today. The series travels back to 1970s Bronx and Harlem, unveiling how hip-hop evolved from its beginnings as a New York house-party experiment, to the global phenomenon it is today, and more importantly, how it created a voice for the disenfranchised.

Acclaimed Canadian MC and media personality Shad Kabango guides viewers through the evolution of the genre, travelling through NYC’s boroughs to speak with hip-hop’s originators and biggest stars.

In the first episode, Shad meets hip-hop’s “Holy Trinity,” three Bronx-based DJs – Kool Herc, Afrika Bambaataa, and Grandmaster Flash – who created hip-hop’s aesthetic and sonic foundations. Motivated by the innovations of these DJs, MCs soon follow, who, inspired by the deep oral traditions of African-American culture, change the dynamic of hip-hop and create the modern template for rap music, resulting in the emergence of hip-hop’s first supercrew – Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

Subsequent episodes trace the explosion of groups following the genre’s first commercial hit, “Rapper’s Delight”, the Golden Age of hip-hop in the 80s, and the creation of the first hip-hop empire, Def Jam Records. The fourth and final episode explores the birth of the West Coast hip-hop scene and Gangsta Rap – a raw, biographical form of rap that continues to dominate the genre today. Interviews throughout the series include Grandmaster Caz, Russell Simmons, LL Cool J, Darryl “DMC” McDaniels, Chuck D, Ice Cube, and Ice T.

Platform: HBO Canada

Producer: Banger Films

TX: 4th September 2016

Source: Bell Media press release