Beat This: A Hip Hop History (1984)

Beat This: A Hip-Hop History is a 1984 BBC documentary film about hip-hop culture, directed by Dick Fontaine. The cast includes Afrika Bambaataa, DJ Kool Herc — the film includes footage from Herc's original dance parties — The Cold Crush Brothers, Jazzy Jay, Brim Fuentes, and The Dynamic Rockers. It is narrated by Imhotep Gary Byrd

[police sirens]

["Renegades of Funk"
by Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force]

♪ From a different solar system
many, many galaxies away ♪

♪ We are the force of another creation ♪

♪ A new musical revelation ♪

♪ And we're on this musical message ♪

♪ To help the others listen ♪

♪ Improve momentum and ♪

♪ seek the electronic chance ♪

♪ - Like
- Astrology ♪

♪ - Like
- Technology ♪

♪ - Like
- God's Creation ♪

♪ - Like
- The Zulu station ♪

♪ - Like
- To the nation ♪

♪ - Like
- Destroy all nations ♪

♪ - Like
- Militants ♪

♪ - Like
- Down in sand ♪

♪ - Like!
- Through changes, ♪

♪ nothing stays the same ♪

♪ Oh renegades ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o waya abanga ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o
way-a way-a way-a... ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o waya abanga ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o
way-a way-a way-a... ♪

♪ I got some more. ♪

(Narrator) "The Renegades of Funk -
Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force.

Well, good evening and welcome to another
GBE—a Gary Bird experience—

as the funky forces of the universe
come together

for us to bring another set of
Big Apple jams your way.

In a few minutes my engineer Jonathan E
at Master Control and I gonna go

looking for something perfect,
the perfect beat for you,

especially if you are up at Planet Rock,
The Bronx, or the Zulu Nation,

as in dance formation tonight.

Speaking of dance, have you heard about
he WLIB breakdance contest?

You have a chance
to win a trip to the mother country;

the place that sent Afrika Bambaataa
into a galaxy far, far away.

Who knows? You could be on your way

into the land of the pyramids,
checking it all out."

["Planet Rock - Instrumental"
by Afrika Bambaataa & Soulsonic Force]

[robotic voice]
Rock, rock to Planet Rock, don't stop

[robotic voice]
Rock, rock to Planet Rock, don't stop

["Planet Rock" music continues]

[robotic voices]

["Planet Rock" music continues]

What if we to just settle down here?

Well it's a little old-fashioned
[voice fades]

["Planet Rock" music continues]

(Narrator's voice fades in)
"...planets, especially Venus and Jupiter,

can be seen in the sky
not long after sunset.

With the glow of twilight
still lingering,

and a dash of near-sightedness,
and some good old human imagination,

and some well-intentioned people
will even claim 'it's shooting off sparks,

it's as big as a basketball, it has
landing lights', and so on.

Hard to believe?

Well, the most frequently reported
UFOs on record

are the planets Venus and Jupiter -

IFOs, once you know a little about the
autokinetic illusion and the night sky.

July 24, 1948.
An Eastern Airlines flight is en route

from Houston to Atlanta, when suddenly...
[otherworldly electronic noise]

The flight crew, all intelligent, trained
observers, reported the—"

[strange beeps and sounds]

[banging on timpani]

(robotic voice)
"I am the funk overlord.

I have come to take control
of your flight.

Who controls the present,
controls the past.

Who controls the past,
controls the future.

Funk!"

[music from Bambaataa's
"Looking for the Perfect Beat"]

(Narrator)
"So this is how Bam sends 'em

to the street, hip hoppin',
lookin' for the perfect beat."

[music from Bambaataa's
Looking for the Perfect Beat]

Rappin', scratchin', breakin', shakin',
the success of hip hop is in the making.

[music from Bambaataa's
Looking for the Perfect Beat]

(Narrator) "On TV and on radio,
you hear and see it, wherever you go."

[music from Bambaataa's
Looking for the Perfect Beat]

(Narrator) "Graffiti began on the walls,
and now it's sold in stores and malls."

["Looking for the Perfect Beat" music]

♪ Want to want to
do-do do-do-do-do do-do ♪

♪ Do-do-do do do-do-do-do
do do-do-do-do do ♪

["Looking for the Perfect Beat" music]

(Narrator) " From uptown to Fifth Avenue,
the journey took a heck of a crew,

from a neighborhood and a street scene

all around the world
to the silver screen."

["The Hitler Rap"]
♪ Well, hi there people, you know me ♪

♪ I used to run a little joint
called Germany ♪

♪ I was number one
The people's choice ♪

♪ And everybody listened to
my mighty voice ♪

♪ My name is Adolf,
I'm on the mic ♪

♪ Gonna hip you to the story
of the New Third Reich ♪

♪ It all began down in Munich town
& pretty soon ♪

♪ Word started gettin' around ♪

♪ I said to Martin Boorman,
I said "Hey Marty, ♪

♪ Why don't we throw a little
Nazi party?" ♪

♪ So we had an election,
well, kinda sorta ♪

♪ And before you knew it,
hello new order! ♪

♪ To all those mothers in the Fatherland ♪

♪ I said "Achtung baby!
I got me a plan." ♪

♪ "Whatcha got, Adolf?
Whatcha gonna do?" ♪

♪ I said "How about this one?
World War Two." ♪

♪ To be or not be ♪

♪ Oh baby— ♪

[music fades, record scratching]

All that scratchin' is makin'
me itch!

[mixed-up music]

♪ Duck Duck Duck ♪
♪ Duck Duck Duck ♪

(Narrator)
"What once was in the underground

has now, by elements, been found

like anywhere you see fresh meat,
the culture vultures come to eat.

Now with hip hop on his lip,
Malcolm McLaren begins his trip,

how he went to the Planet Rock
and came back to Britain in future shock,

cos though he thought punk was the top,
he found the groove was in hip hop."

[hip hop music]

♪ Breakdance Breakdance ♪

♪ It's a pretty good job out there Jimmy ♪

♪ We oughta dance and dance differently ♪

♪ So we sing and dance— ♪

(Malcolm McLaren)
"I was, uh...

working with a group called
Bow Wow Wow.

I came over there because they were
selling some RCA records

and I was looking to put them on
in a hole in Manhattan somewhere,

but the terrible thing was I was really
stuck for a responsible

and interesting and exciting
kind of opening act.

And nothing was happening in New York.

Then a friend of mine introduced me
to a guy who I met on the street,

somewhere down 5th Avenue.
He told me about an incredible scene

that was happening not in Manhattan, but
out in a suburb known as the South Bronx.

He said if I liked,
I could come on a Saturday night

to a big party where I would see something

that couldn't possibly have
ever existed in England.

And, I decided to actually pitch up
with him on Saturday night.

Upon arriving, the party

—unknown to me,
I thought it would be indoors—

was actually out in the open,
in a wasteland,

surrounded by these huge
fired out condominiums.

There, in the midst of it, was about
thousand kids and I couldn't believe it.

I was very, very worried being
the only white guy there and

the cab driver signaled me
to put my dollars in my socks.

[stammers, laughs] Nevertheless,
I escorted myself across the road

with this guy, made my way through
the crowd, pushing and shoving

until I got to the decks where
the music was coming from,

shook hands with this huge fat guy,
who later became known to me

as a guy called Afrika Bambaataa.

And what I witnessed was a various
group of different young kids,

who were poppin' in and out amongst
the decks, messin' about with records.

What l saw was extraordinary,
because the sound

coming out was totally inarticulate.
It was a load of rough noises

that sounded a little like a guitar,
but sort of like a concrete chisel sound.

And the sound, I realized,
was actually coming from the way they were

messin' with their hands on the decks,
movin' records backwards and forwards.

They weren't just doing it with
one record, but with two,

and they were mixing across one
to the other.

In fact, it was making music
out of other people's music."

[mixed music plays, repeating]

As time went on and I stuck around
for an hour or so,

the crowd was extremely volatile
jumping into pitch battles at times.

But at one point or another, people
would move to the side,

and a group of kids would start
freakin' out in the middle,

doing all this incredible
gymnastic dancing.

[distorted, choppy music plays
over beats]

(Narrator)
"What McLaren saw was called 'hip-hop',

energy and motion that you could not stop.

Demanding all of your imagination
if you were to share in the celebration.

It wasn't enough to just be good,
you had to be super bad,

cos when you hit that floor,

your reputation was just about
all you had."

(McLaren) "I think hip-hop is
being in control of your body,

that's the whole art of it,
understanding that

you're much bigger than you are,
a demo of your prowess.

If you're penniless,
the one thing you can do

on Madison Avenue is spin on your head
and show all the white honkies

moving out of the Chase Manhattan Bank
on their lunch time and say, 'Well

Beat that, and if you can't, here's
my cap. Give me a few dollars.' "

[train moving, faint commotion]

(Narrator)
"But the story of hip-hop doesn't belong

in New York, LA, or London, that's wrong.

The true story begins in devastation,
bad housing, gang wars, and desperation,

in the Bronx ghetto, or Planet Rock.

Let's take a minute - turn back the clock.
["Space Cowboy" by Jonzun Crew]

To the first hero of the hip hop groove,
the man who made the people move.

["Space Cowboy" music]

From Jamaica he came with
a sense of rhythm,

and what he brought to the Bronx
was a sound system.

The music he played made life work,
and made him a legend:

Kool DJ Herc."

["Space Cowboy" music]

♪ He's bad! ♪

♪ ["Space Cowboy" music] ♪

♪ Space Cowboy ♪

♪ ["Space Cowboy" music] ♪

(Herc) "When Kool Herc have a party,
everybody be there.

Lot of people say I'm fun, big fun.

That was the talk for the whole weekend
or the whole summer,

'Where did you party?'

'I was partying with Kool Herc, man.
Ghetto block party, you know,

tennis court, disco...
a lot of other things, too.' "

["Space Cowboy" music]

♪ He's bad! ♪

♪ He's mean! ♪

♪ He's a Space Cowboy
in the spacey jeans ♪

♪ He's bad! ♪

I like to buy my records...
right over here.

But now it's not there no more,
called 'Sounds and Things'.

There used to be a ballroom up there,
I used to play, matter of fact,

I play up there for the transit authority
dinner, one time, and...

Mario Cuomo was there
before becoming governor.

Basically, right here.

A place called 'Galaxy 2000'.

["Space Cowboy"
plays in the background]

(Herc)
"They had a big shootout here one time.

Same time I played at Bronx River.

I came back,
I'd seen the canopy knocked down,

the fire escape was let down,
and I knew something was wrong."

The Bronx is on the uplift.

["Space Cowboy" music]

A lot of places are being rehabilitated.

[Traffic sounds
and "Space Cowboy" music]

Well, I think there's still more
that could be done - a whole lot.

♪ with the laser gun! ♪

All those unforgettable promises...

♪ Yippey-Yi, Yippey-Yi ♪

From the South Bronx
when the Carters came over.

Made out of iron, right?

♪ Yay... A Space Cowboy... [beats]
Yippey-Yi, Yippey-Yi, Yippey-Yi, Yay ♪

Well, I never left the Bronx,
and I love the Bronx.

[music and trafic noise]

I don't wanna leave.

[music and trafic noise]

[upbeat funky music]

(Narrator)
"What Herc did was throw down the sound

of forgotten heroes, like James Brown,

and separate the good stuff from the junk,
with the emphasis on a lot of funk.

And in the middle of a funky sound,

Coke La Rock, his rapper,
would go to town.

The music was hot, very loud,
with participation to excite the crowd.

Then Herc would drop a mighty blast
with a golden oldie from music past."

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

Um ... Sedgwick, 1520...

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

over 10 years ago...

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

(Woman) "Ooh, look at that medallion,
what happened to that?"

[sound of the tape spinning]

Um... It got stolen.
That was my badge, like a sheriff.

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

Place was packed.

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

(Woman) "How was it?"

(Kool Herc)
"It was pretty good.

Everybody showed up,
had a good time.

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

Everybody put on their best that day."

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

All of the sudden—
I don't know, all of the sudden...

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

Something happened, made it so that we
didn't get into the parties no more.

[sound of the tape spinning
while recording]

[sound fades out]

I got injured. I got stabbed.
Fatally stabbed, now.

And that just put a hole
through the whole thing.

I walk right into it, and I just...

I didn't know where the knife came from.

I just literally walk into it.
I was hit four times.

The last of them pierced my hand,
and it went all the way through.

It shouldn't have happened.

And that does draw me a show,
you know?

I just stopped. I stopped playing for—
I didn't accept a gig, I wasn't—

I was not out in the public eyes
too much.

["Space Cowboy" music]

That was the rise of a lot of DJs.

Herc wasn't on the scene,
this is our chance.

And a lot of them dashed in and
capitalized on it.

DJs and the music that they used to come
to hear at my party was all over now.

[beats]

Kool Herc is not a stepping stone,
he's a horse that can't be rode,

and a bull that can't be stopped,
there ain't a disco I can't rock. Rock on.

It could've been on my obituary -

that this was the guy who started this,
this was what he did."

[Hip-hop music beats]

(Narrator)
"Though he may be a fallen hero,

all will forever say
that in the history of hip-hop,

he was its number one DJ."

You see, Herc had started something
that not even his enemies wanted to stop.

Kool DJ Herc had launched the birth of
a movement called hip-hop.

(Narrator continues)

"In the middle of Savage Skulls and on
the top of the hill with the Seven Crowns,

the gangs were in the Bronx
and they were seriously getting down.

It was little Vietnam, where even the
police watched out for raids,

and where the baddest of them all was a
street gang known as the Black Spades.

And from them emerged a boy
who became the adopted father

of the hip hop generation,
a Zulu, Afrika Bambaataa."

I got into street gangs, the Black Spades.

I was in a lot of other groups
before I became a Spade.

P.O.W.E.R, Crowns, Savage Nomads...

and um,

but Spades was one of the groups
that I really loved a lot.

There was a lot of unity in the group.
[clears throat].

It was one of the most hated groups
in the whole city

cause all it was about was um,
trouble and stuff and aesthetic.

But it was one of the most organized
Black youth groups.

As for, if you mess with them,
they would mess with you.

(Bambaata) "Plus in that year, 1975, um,
one of the brothas that was close to me,

that lived with me for about two years,
by the name Solsky,

got shot by the police on Pelham Bay,

with some other members of the Spades.

And um, he died and this other member died
and one survived."

[hip hop music plays in background]

(Narrator)
"The violent death of Bam's best friend,

marked for him the end of the line.

And he went back to a vision
that once had occurred

inside of his youthful mind.

A way to fight, yet maintain peace.

An impossible situation,

unless you could create something powerful

like his memory of the Zulu nation."

[Zulu chants and beats on TV]

I say violence is necessary.

Violence is a part of America's culture,

it is as American as Cherry Pie

American calls for Black people
to be violent.

We will use that violence
to get ourselves up.

[voice fades to hip hop music]

(Martin Luther King Jr) "Former slaves
and the sons of former slave owners...

Will they be able to sit down together
at the table of brotherhood?

I have a dream...

One day..."

(KKK member)
"Basically, uh, my goal

in the clan is to bring about
a unification

of all of the Anglo-saxon, Protestant,
American citizens

into a bond of unity to counter-act
the philosophies of the minority and—"

(Nelson Mandela)
"There are many people who feel

that it is useless and futile

for us to continue talking
peace and non-violence

against a government whose reply is only

savage attacks on an unarmed,
defenseless people."

[radio static]
[hip-hop music]

(Malcolm X) "We are not human beings
unless we ourselves, band together

and do whatever, however,
whenever, is necessary

to see that our lives and our property
is protected,

and I doubt that any person in here
would refuse to do the same thing,

were he in the same position.

Or I should say,
were he in the same condition."

[hip hop music]

(Narrator) "It was with the vision
of the Zulu nation,

a trip to Africa, and a death situation,

that produced a man who put on Zulu dress

and began to transform a violent mix."

[Malcolm X's, "No Sell Out"
echoes in the background]

(Narrator)
"Bambaataa was always a music man,

a record collector who was a DJ jammed.

Now he saw a new idea to use
stand and prow in his career,

to put the Bronx in a music trance

and move from violence to Zulu dance..."

[hip-hop music]

(Narrator)
"And so it became hip to hop

in the land known as Planet Rock,

where gangs used to
fight in the street every day,

now they began to compete
in a different way.

As the DJ's music made the house shake,

the dancers would begin to break.

Some electric boogie to move like toys,

others would spin and became b-boys."

[hip hop beats]

[music fades out]

Yeah!
[laughs]

There you go. Hey you guys ready?

- Yeah.
- Let's go.

(Narrator)
"The breakers know what they have got

from electro-boogie to street robot.

They dance off the anger
in a street or room...

Who needs a gang when the beat goes boom"

- Yes, can I help you?
- Yes.

- Whatchu doin' here?
- You guys can come back

- Gonna take control here
- Don't think—

Ah, take us out, ha ha ha!

- Yeah
- Is that so?

["The Wildstyle" by Afrika Bambaataa]

♪ It ain't nothin' ♪

♪ It ain't nothin' but the wildstyle ♪

♪ The wildstyle ♪

♪ Hit me! ♪

♪ You can do it, do it, do it, do it,
do it, do it. The wildstyle ♪

♪ The wildstyle ♪

♪ Get down! ♪

♪ So funky ♪

♪ What Bootsy said?
To the bridge mother! Do it, do it ♪

♪ Do it ♪

B-Side, rock on

♪ Do it, do it ♪

♪ B-Side, rock on ♪

♪ Shout shout ♪

♪ People over here
People over there ♪

♪ Dancin' in the street
And dancin' to our beat ♪

♪ Poppin' in the door
And breakin' on the floor ♪

♪ Checkin' out the feet
that's movin' to a beat. Do it ♪

♪ Do what? ♪

♪ The wildstyle ♪

♪ Motivator ♪

♪ Motivator ♪

♪ Motivator ♪

♪ Motivator ♪

♪ Can you funk?
Do it, do it ♪

♪ Can you funk?
Do it ♪

♪ Do it. Break it down! Down! ♪

♪ Break it down! Down! Shout! ♪

♪ Life is so hard
Tryin' to get a job ♪

♪ Employee so new,
no cash money green ♪

♪ The systеm is mean
Destroying all dreams ♪

♪ Flying to thе moon
Nobody's in the schools ♪

♪ Do it ♪

♪ Do what? ♪

♪ It's the wildstyle
C'mon. The wildstyle ♪

♪ Do it, do it, do it, do it,
do it, do it, do it, do it ♪

♪ Do it, do it ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Good God! ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Good Good Good Good! ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Do it ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ Shout ♪

♪ It's the wildstyle ♪

♪ The wildstyle ♪

♪ Talk about rap ♪

♪ Talk about funk ♪

♪ Talk about rock ♪

♪ Talk about life ♪

♪ It's the wildstyle ♪

♪ The wildstyle ♪

♪ My heart is beating fast
I'm running out of gas ♪

♪ No not the Zulu style
With your own sense of style. Do it ♪

♪ Do it
It's the wildstyle ♪

♪ Do do do the wild
style-style-style-style-style ♪

♪ Do it ♪

♪ Do it ♪

♪ C'mon, everybody! ♪

♪ In life, you got to fight ♪

♪ In life, you're not always right ♪

♪ In life, if the tone is right ♪

♪ In life, stop thinkin' you're Christ! ♪

♪ Do it ♪

♪ B-Side ♪

♪ B-Side ♪

♪ Speak your mind ♪

♪ C'mon, speak your mind ♪

♪ B-Side ♪

♪ To the bridge! ♪

♪ In the land of Oz
People on Mars ♪

♪ Livin' in a timezone ♪

♪ Tryin' not to be alone ♪

(Narrator) "The elements of hip-hop
go beyond the dance

to the streets where artists take a chance

and the Bronx where young men on the go

paint trains and walls like Picasso

Graffiti is what they call their art

and it's here where they get their start

Though you may think these policemen bars,

they battle kids like Brim
and graffiti wars."

Chief, all these stickers
were used as settlements

Those kids were locked up on the graffiti

(Sergeant)
"Art versus transit... fame...

The new king of all offenders...

Uh...the rest of you got your assignments?
Yeah all right.

Hickey and Ski,
I want you to stay half the roll call.

I have a special assignment
for you on a graffiti.

All right, thank you both."

(Hickey)
"We'll thwart it one day, right sarge?"

(Sarge) "We have some information that
they cut the fence on the Jerome yards

That's the new fence and
they cut it right open again."

[sound of a train moving]

(Narrator)
"Let's take a look inside the machine

and watch New York's finest
on the graffiti scene."

[sound of a train moving]

[train sounds fade away]

(Brim Fuentes)
"What does this look like to you?

Does this look like something
that'd be in a city?

This looks like a jail, a prison [laughs]
with all this barbed wire around you.

What kind of feeling—

I wonder how the people
that live around here feel

with all this wire and stuff around them.

Looks like something from Germany
the Nazis and all that."

Kryolan, astounding. I feel like
I'm doing a commercial for these things.

Here's the best can of paint on the market
which they'll invariably go out and steal!

They never pay for the paint,
they'll steal it.

The only way I can figure it -

that Mayor Koch and the Head of the MTA...
It's not that they don't like graffiti.

It's that they don't like something
they can't control.

This is vandalism. That's what it is.

They're defacing
somebody else's property.

I wouldn't want them coming to my house
and painting it up, nor my car.

Mayor Koch tried to get us
to make a deal with him—

that he would give us 10 cars to paint

and we would stop with the graffiti.

But it doesn't work like that because

it'll be fine for me but I cannot stop
someone else who wants to paint the train

cos they got to express their feelings
the same way I get to express mine.

I'm not gonna tell someone, "You can't
express your feelings, only I can."

That's not how it works

Like I said there's tens of thousands
of these kids doing graffiti.

Only a handful of them are really good
but whether they're good or bad,

they have no business being down here.
It's dangerous, they can get hurt

and it's not their property.

(Brim) "As long as there's something to
be said in the ghetto

there'll be graffiti.

If it's in a building or it's in a train,
wherever something has to be said

you know, in New York city
that's the way we express ourselves

It might seem silly to someone else but

in New York city that's the way,
we express ourselves."

[Hip hop music]

All this just makes me madder
and makes me wanna go painting more.

When I see this you know it burns me up,
I wanna go out and paint

and I wanna show them that they can't win
because they can't.

The war against graffiti been like 10 yrs
and they haven't won nothing.

[Hip hop music]

It took them 10 years
to put this fence on.

It'll just take us another year
to get into them

Just give us some time. We'll return.

[Hip hop music]

[music fades out]

Now we are here today in order to induct
into the rapper's Hall of Fame

just a few of the greatest rappers
who ever made rapping their life and fame.

It didn't start with the Sugarhill Gang,
it didn't start with Kurtis Blow

nor with Flash or the Furious Five,
you can take it from me, I know.

We're going back to where it all began

at radio stations all over the land

with Jocko, Hot Rod and Montague -
DJs who rap like DJs do

with names like Hatter and Dr.Jive
in the 50s and 60s keeping rap alive.

Just a step for our tradition
for rap to take on a social mission.

Rap gives kids a whole new way

to express themselves and sometimes pay.

You might've been told you were no good,
with rap, you're king of the neighborhood.

(Muhammad Ali)
"Man can't fake, he's a Geechee...

Hey he's Joe Frazier.

Joe Frazier

Joe Frazier"

(Narrator)
"People of the world, the man you see

was the world's greatest rapper
Muhammad Ali

and the days when he was Cassius Clay
was the first national rapper in the USA."

(Muhammad Ali) "He's going around saying
that he's a championship fighter

but when he meets me
he'll fall 20 pounds lighter.

He thinks he's a real heavyweight champ.
After I'm finished he'll just be a tramp.

I'm not sayin' this just to be funny,

but I'm fightin' Ernie because
he needs the money." [laughter]

I decided to let him make a little bread
but to catch his I must whip his head.

I understand he wants to stand toe to toe
and with me trade blow for blow

but if he's hip he'll take a dip
because I plan to bust his lip.

From the northeast to the northwest,
from the southeast to the west coast,

from the northwest to the mid-west
every rapper thinks he can rap the most.

But it all began in Aka-Bo land
many many moons ago

It was among the vibes, the powerful vines
from which our roots do grow

The Yoruba and the Bantu,
the Sotho and the Gotha,

the Akan people of Ghana,
the Rwanda and the Hausa,

they engaged in a form of praise
done by griots or a chosen bard.

Today we call it throwing down, or,
maybe rapping hard.

- Who are you?
- Who am I? Who are you?

- Who am I? Who are you?
- Who am I? Who are you?

Who am I? I'm Caz!

Oh what what do that mean?

That I'm the baddest MC lover
on the Hip-Hop Scene

J.D.L big deal, what does that prove?

That I'm the MC that make the people move.

- I'm Easy!
- Easy who and what is your game?

I'm Easy A D
I bet your girls know my name.

I'm Jay-Z

That's your business, what you gotta say?

That I can rock you anywhere
anytime anyday.

What chasing to the DJs?
What do they wanna do?

Bring in the funky record
when you give us the cue.

Like 10, 9, 8-7-6, 5-4-3-2-1

Have fun!

[knocking]
Who's that now?

- Ya, who's that man, carry on.
- It's okay, no bother.

Oh no girls, no!
All risks!

- No!
- Heartbreakers! Got a nice one in there.

I know you has the cold cause
whats the Heartbreakers supposed to mean?

- No! She wanna know—
- She knows actually friends, she knows!

.,,all in your mind.

Would you actually tell her
what Heartbreakers mean?

♪ We'll promise you the world
and won't deliver ♪

♪ A broken heart is what we'll give ya ♪

♪ Make you feel like a million
by the things we say ♪

♪ Make you feel like a fool
the very next day ♪

♪ We're heartbreakers ha-ha.
We're heart-heart-heartbreakers.♪

[phone rings]

♪ Hello, Yeah girl, it's me, the captain,
with some raps for you ♪

♪ So listen up, don't talk
until I'm through ♪

♪ Now you're sweet, you're fine,
and you got class ♪

♪ I feel things are going way too fast ♪

♪ It's not that I don't enjoy
having you around ♪

♪ But I'm the kind of man
that can't be tied down ♪

♪ Thanks for all the joy
that you brought to me ♪

♪ And I hope you understand
that I gotta be free ♪

♪ We're heart-breakers
And this is how we break your heart ♪

Ask them a simple question,
they're gonna come out the face,

- try talk what it's all about.
- You see the problem?

Caz guy were on the phone,
he was talkin to the girl,

- and he jested like that?
- Mutha, he was a saint. Ha ha ha ha.

Eh ben, il s'opérait pas bien,
comment aller?

♪ Ah, Sophisticated queen MC ♪

♪ Yes of course, that's me,
mistress of ceremony ♪

♪ The one that's gonna
take it to the top of the key ♪

♪ Introducing myself, MC Lisa Lee ♪

♪ The blast from the past,
superb in every word ♪

♪ Supest female rapper,
yes, the best you heard ♪

♪ Lisa Lee is known to be
the people's choice ♪

♪ I get parties rocking
with my sensuous voice ♪

♪ When you see the queen
walking up the street ♪

♪ I'm not souped up, conceited,
just incognit' ♪

♪ I make the fellas sweat
coz I keep their bodies hot ♪

♪ It's a woman's world,
you gotta give whatu got ♪

♪ I'm Sha, party people,
& I'm ready to rock ♪

♪ If you wanna be down,
you gotta gimme whatu got ♪

♪ Fellas in the place
I won't steer you wrong ♪

♪ You gotta give it up or leave it alone ♪

♪ So get ready for this,
get ready for this ♪

♪ Partypeople in the place,
get ready for this ♪

♪ To you!
So what you gonna do? ♪

♪ Do you wanna rock the house
Turn this mutha out? ♪

♪ Fly girls, are you with us? ♪

♪ And if you're ready to rock ♪

♪ to help me turn it out ♪

♪ Let the world know
what we're talkin about ♪

♪To all the ladies ♪

♪ Yeah! ♪

♪ I want you to listen dana-da-dan ♪

♪ Hey, ladies! ♪

♪ Yeah! ♪

♪ 1980! Dana-da. ♪

♪ Watch out for the fellas, yeah!
That'll drive you crazy dana-da. ♪

♪ Look out! ♪

♪ Hey, you better abide ♪

♪ While we rock your ass
on the solo side ♪

♪ Grandmaster Caz, you are the Cap ♪

♪ Get on the mic
Show 'em you're the lord of rap ♪

♪ Well I'm the Cap of the Four, MC exec ♪

♪ And I don't come at all
if it ain't correct ♪

♪ Don't have to bite, not necessary ♪

♪ The Grandmaster Caz
got a rhyme library ♪

♪ Rhyme from now until the break of day ♪

♪ Don't have a big mouth
just lots to say ♪

♪ If you run outta rhymes,
start sounding dumb ♪

♪ Come see me, me, me, G.M.C ♪

♪ I am the Captain of the Four
And I'm guaranteed to sell you some ♪

♪ A-Duracell J.D.L.
you're the number-one flaker ♪

♪ Get on the mic
Show 'em you're hut maker ♪

♪ You hear my (2)
You hear my (2) ♪

♪ You hear my (2)
You hear my (2) ♪

♪ You hear my voice on cassettes
and on 8-track ♪

♪ Next step is to have it put on wax ♪

♪ On the radio station
to make the jam sell ♪

♪ I came to you again on WJDL ♪

♪ Doing worldwide tours, TV of course ♪

♪ Plus my own line of products
which I endorse ♪

♪ Financial clout, a piece of the rock ♪

♪ And 600 shares, 6,000 shares,
6,000,000 shares of IBM stock ♪

♪ Now Easy A.D. making your girl scream ♪

♪ Get on the mic, show 'em
why you're Supreme ♪

♪ I'm girl-taker A.D.
top of the chart ♪

♪ I'm not a thief but known to
steal your heart ♪

♪ Won't be too long before I'm seen ♪

♪ In the cover of Life Magazine ♪

♪ Cos I see it in your eyes
when I start rappin' ♪

♪ You kno I'm the man
that makes things happen ♪

♪ Furthermore, if you want company ♪

♪ Here's my number & a dial
so you can call me ♪

♪ And Almighty Kay Gee,
the last, not least ♪

♪ So get on the microphone
and speak your piece ♪

♪ I don't beat around the bush
I don't stall ♪

♪ When you say Kay Gee, you said it all ♪

♪ If you dunno by now,
you should've been told ♪

♪ When they made Almighty,
I broke the mold ♪

♪ Rob from the rich, give to the poor ♪

♪ I snatch a few dollars
for the Cold Crush Four ♪

♪ Almighty, I'm down with the best ♪

♪ If you don't like me,
I wouldn't care less, so ♪

♪ Calling a truce and raise a flag ♪

♪ There ain't an MC crew
that we can't rag ♪

♪ Now we got two records
and been on tour. ♪

Hey, what's up?

What's up?

What you doin professor?

I'm coming up with a new show
so hot coals, up moles, funky

My!

You're bringing some good stuff, alright.

Where y'all going?

Chill it man, we were just talking

- Yeah, man, we can't go without you.
- No way.

- You know it
- Thought you might know something

- Yeah, man.
- What'u got this time?

[rappers talking and laughing]

Yeah...

Dancing baby, can you dance?

How good can you dance?

I can dance better than you can rhyme...

- Ah, stop that brashness Keith
- You know that man!

♪ I'm always Poppin', sockin', rockin'
puttin' a side the hip-hop ♪

♪ while the other MCs all stare... ♪

♪ Cos where I'm goin'
there ain't no stoppin' ♪

Let's see what you can do.

- What can you do?
- I'm good.

[rappers laughing]

Like that man, like that!

Yeah, show 'em.

Ha ha ha

Can do stuff man, show 'em,
let's see what you got man

They say you're flat, show 'em

Man, by the way, what's her name?

♪ Hey her name is Pow-wow
with all the know how ♪

♪ who could rock it right here
& sock it now ♪

♪ bcos I'm the one shook up but all the
party people will work their while ♪

♪ Well introduce to me to G.L.O.B.E ♪

♪ I got the funky harmony as you can see ♪

♪ My rhymes are so sweet
for little boy Keith ♪

♪ So get little Keith to show up with me ♪

♪ Just dance little Keith,
dance little Keith, dance... ♪

Man that was back in the old days though,
beat-boy and all that stuff

Know what it's all about now?

♪ Callers talkin about
puttin' aside hip-hop ♪

♪ Cos where we're going,
there ain't no stoppin ♪

♪ Now the style we use
can hardly be measured ♪

♪ We're doin' it for the people
surely is a pleasure ♪

♪ Can rock away the sound
of the stormy weather ♪

♪ We're 3 for all,
that means we are together ♪

♪ We're just too clever
& never in our lives ♪

♪ will we hear a rhyme good enough
for us to bite. So listen as we recite ♪

♪ It's Mr. Biggs, MC Pow Wow, and Globe ♪

♪ We're just rockin' it up
Yeah, what else is so worthy ♪

♪ till you can't believe who are musical
and all the mikes we are so magical ♪

♪ We're playin' tricks on your mind
steppin' it back & forth ♪

♪ We're tellin' you to run
when you should walk ♪

♪ You know our style is incredible ♪

♪ This some people consider a miracle ♪

♪ It's a rap, a clap on its way to the top
That's the peak of the chart ♪

♪ We'll beat the MCs but ♪

♪ we're 3 and can perceive
high potential with the MC style ♪

♪ I'll know when you're trying
hard to compete ♪

♪ You're making the same mistake
jumping off the pace that we create ♪

♪ Get on it Soulsonic coz we're the boss
and we've got the force, the backup, ♪

♪ the melody, the harmony and we're 3 MCs
and most definitely this is an MC tree ♪

♪ So people get out there, gather round ♪

♪ Check out what we three MCs have found ♪

♪ A thing in the future
yet here in the present ♪

♪ not sour but sweet,
nice, cozy & pleasant ♪

♪ Now lets all party. ♪

♪ It's a chance to dance
with the rhythm of the African man ♪

How do you like that?

[hip hop music]

(Narrator)
"He was looking for a perfect beat

It had to match what he felt in the street

Arthur Baker and Bam produced the sound
that zulus the Nation's feet"

[Hip-hop music]

1-2-3
["Renegades of Funk"]

♪ Since the Pre-historic ages
and the days of ancient Greece ♪

♪ All down through the Middle Ages
Planet Earth kept going through changes ♪

♪And then the Renaissance came
Times continued to change ♪

♪ Nothing stayed the same,
but there were always renegades ♪

♪ Like Chief Sitting Bull, Tom Paine ♪

♪ Dr. Martin Luther King, Hannibal ♪

♪ Marco Polo ♪

♪ Like Hagar the horrible ♪

♪ Malcolm X
They were renegades ♪

♪ Yes the renegades
of their time and age ♪

♪ So many renegades
What's that ♪ [clapping]

♪ Now hand clap ♪
[clapping]

♪ The renegades ♪

Excellent!

Shoulda punched in the word LIKE

So you all go "LIKE" real strong

- Alright
- Go on!

♪ LIKE ♪

♪ In the electronic chants ♪

♪ Like - 1 2 3 ♪

Like - Yeah
[beats]

Like!
[beats]

Like!
[beats]

Like!
[beats]

♪ Now renegades are the people
with their own philosophy ♪

♪ They change the course of history ♪

♪ Everyday people like you and me,
you know! ♪

That isn't really right.
What the hell is going on here?

Come on tell me something

♪ Now renegades are the people
with their own philosophy ♪

♪ They changed the course of history ♪

What is wrong?

We ain't coming in on time man...

I can't hear you

- The punching?
- No man...

♪ But come on Mr. Engineer
Get it right, get it right! ♪

♪ Come on Mr. Engineer
Get it right, get it right! ♪

♪ Cause if you don't if you don't
if you don't and if you don't ♪

♪ Renegades are people [laugh]
with their own philosophy ♪

♪ They changed the course of history ♪

♪ Everyday people like you and me ♪

♪ And the days of ancient Greece ♪

♪ All down through the Middle Ages ♪

♪ Planet Earth kept
going through changes ♪

♪ And then the Renaissance came ♪

♪ Times continued to change ♪

♪ Nothing stayed the same ♪

♪ There were always renegades ♪

♪ Like Chief Sitting Bull, Tom Paine ♪

♪ Dr. Martin Luther King, Hannibal ♪

♪ Marco Polo ♪

♪ Hagar the Horrible! ♪

♪ Malcolm X
They were renegades ♪

♪ Yes the renegades
Of their time and age ♪

♪ So many renegades ♪

(Narrator)
"Years ago it was up on the roof

where Duo Whoppers sang
and drank 100 proof.

Today Bam and Biggs
are a part of the force

that rules and overlooks
the Bronx Concourse."

Near here in the Bronx, the Savage Skulls,

further down by Stephens Avenue
the Ghetto Brothers,

Black pearls - those boys man...
but that was alright.

They're still there man,
probably still doing the same old man...

Probably crazy stuff...

And our whole kingdom
Black Spade area savage space...

- Nobody come missing space area
- That was the good thing about it

We used to always go to jail
and nobody ever come over here

especially in Bronx river,
the home of gods...

Everybody messing with little Vietnam

with all the Black Spades
and Reapers was fun, empowered.

Then Immortals...

Look how different
Monroe looked though man

That school used to be all grassy

Now it's all a dust bowl

Yeah it looks wild now, critical...

As you get older
you get to see the beauty from up here

You can see that your town Bronx
is definitely number one

Number one...

Everybody talk about
Bronx is black and dirty and stinks...

Looking from here the Bronx is definitely
the most beautiful...

There are a lot of Zulu Nation men
in Monroe now...

Yeah lot of Zulu Nation in Monroe
in Stephens Avenue...

And then all these
housing development projects...

Soon the Zulu Nation will take over
the Bronx

The Bronx!

- Yeah!
- It's the Bronx in Monroe!

- Yeah!
- Is everybody in the house?

- Yeah!
- Amazing!

[Drumbeats and cheering]

Everybody say, say Zulu man, Zulu man!

A way for man to bridge the gap

Say Z-U-L-U
Everybody say

Zulu!

Z-U-L-U
Everybody say

Zulu!

What's the name of this Nation?

Zulus

Zulus

Who's gonna get on down?

Bambaata Bambaata

One more time!

What's the name of this Nation?

Zulus

Zulus

Who's gonna get on down?

Bambaata Bambaata

Could everybody say Zulu Nation again?

Zulus

Everybody say Zulu Nation again!

Zulus

Everybody say THE

THE!

Say "Cosmic Force"

Cosmic Force!

Everybody say...

(Narrator) "Well that wraps it up for this
evening's edition of our musical mission

I'm Gary Bird inside the GBE.

Remember me next time
you're looking for the perfect beat.

Until tomorrow night remember
you can make it if you try

but keep your head to the sky."

♪ No matter how hard you try
you can't stop us now ♪

[music and clapping]

♪ No matter how hard you try
you can't stop us now ♪

["Renegades of Funk" playing]

♪ Renegades of this atomic age ♪

[beats]

♪ This atomic age for renegades ♪

[beats]

♪ Renegades of this atomic age ♪

[beats]

♪ This atomic age for renegades ♪

[music, beats]

♪ Pre-historic ages
and the days of ancient Greece ♪

♪ All down through the Middle Ages ♪

♪ Planet Earth kept
going through changes ♪

♪ Then the Renaissance came
Times continued to change ♪

♪ Nothing stayed the same,
but there were always renegades ♪

♪ Like Chief Sitting Bull, Tom Paine ♪

♪ Dr. Martin Luther King, Malcolm X ♪

♪ They were renegades
Yes the renegades ♪

♪ Of their time and age ♪

♪ So many renegades
What's that ♪

[beats]

♪ It's a hand clap, the renegade ♪

[music and beats]

♪ From a different solar system,
many many galaxies away ♪

♪ We are the force of another creation
A new musical revelation ♪

♪ And we're on this musical mission
to help the others listen ♪

♪ And groove from land to land
singin' electronic chants ♪

♪ - Like
- Astrology ♪

♪ - Like
- Technology ♪

♪ Like
- God's Creation ♪

♪ - Like
- The Zulu station ♪

♪ - Like
- To the nation ♪

♪ - Like
- Destroy all nations ♪

♪ - Like
- Militants ♪

♪ Like
- Down in sand ♪

♪ Like ♪

♪ Through changes,
nothing stays the same ♪

♪ Oh renegades ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o waya abanga ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o
way-a way-a way-a... ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o waya abanga ♪

♪ Way-o way-o way-o
way-a way-a way-a... ♪

♪ I got some more ♪

[music, beats and clapping ]

♪ Now renegades are people
with their own philosophy ♪

♪ They change the course of history ♪

♪ Everyday people like you and me ♪

♪ You know they have
own their secret notions ♪

♪ And time is endless motion ♪

♪ All people of the moderate ages
here in this twentieth century ♪

♪ You have to keep up in time
with the moderate time ♪

♪ A state of mind and a sense of pride ♪

♪ A renegade, yes a renegade ♪

♪ Of this time and age
So many renegades ♪

♪ Who's that ♪

♪ Now hand clap ♪

♪ The renegades ♪

[music]

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ Poppin sockin rockin
with a side of hip-hop ♪

♪ Where we're goin'
there ain't no stoppin' ♪

♪ Poppin sockin rockin
with a side of hip-hop

Where we're goin'
there ain't no stoppin'

Poppin sockin rockin
with a side of hip-hop

Cos where we're goin'
there ain't no stoppin'

Poppin sockin rockin
with a side of hip-hop

Cos where we're goin'
there ain't no stoppin' ♪

[music, beats]

♪ There was a time when our music
Was something called the Bay Street beat ♪

♪ People would gather from all around ♪

♪ To get down on the Bay sound ♪

♪ You had to be a renegade those days ♪

♪ To take a man on the dance floor ♪

♪ Like Afrika Bambattaa
and the Soulsonic Force ♪

♪ We're talking about Mr.B
Pow Wow, G-L-O-B-E ♪

♪ Was a renegade,
yes, a renegade of this time and age ♪

♪ So many renegades
What's that ♪

♪ It's a hand clap ♪

♪ The renegade ♪

[music]

♪ - Just jam sucker
- Jam sucker ♪

♪ - Say jam sucker
- Jam sucker ♪

♪ - Say groove, sucker
- Groove, sucker ♪

♪ - Say groove, sucker
- Groove, sucker ♪

♪ - Say dance, sucker
- Dance, sucker ♪

♪ - Say dance, sucker
- Dance, sucker ♪

♪ - Now move, sucker
- Move, sucker ♪

♪ - Now move, sucker
- Move, sucker ♪

[music]

Everybody say

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

♪ We're the renegades of funk ♪

[music]
♪ Yeah you better shake that fellas ♪

♪ Shake that thing ♪

♪ That makes me swing ♪

♪ I got some great ♪

♪ He's a renegade of funk ♪

♪ Mr. Biggs
He's a renegade of funk ♪

♪ Bambaataa
He's a renegade of funk ♪

♪ Pow Wow
He's a renegade of funk ♪

♪ And MC Globe ♪