Bad Rap Documentary (Review)

BAD RAP follows the lives and careers of four Asian-American rappers trying to break into a world that often treats them as outsiders. Sharing dynamic live performance footage and revealing interviews, these artists make the most skeptical critics into believers.
From battle rhymes of crowd-favorite Dumbfoundead to the tongue-in-cheek songs of Awkwafina, the unapologetic visuals of Rekstizzy to conflicted values of Lyricks, the film paints a memorable portrait of artistic passion.

Insightful, eye opening and a true underdog story are a few descriptions I would use for "Bad Rap." Director Salima Koroma and Producer Jaeki Cho have crafted a documentary that not only shows a different perspective of Hip Hop from the eyes of someone trying to break into the genre, but also touch on some issues facing many Asian American entertainers till this day. "Bad Rap" as the synopsis states follows four Hip Hop artist Dumbfoundead, Awkwafina, Rekstizzy and Lyricks. Each rapper have a different background, style and approach but have the same passion the world of Hip Hop. One of the many things you will enjoy the great introduction to the film. A mini history lesson on Hip Hop but told from the Asian-American perspective. The film will drop names, show clips of many hip hop artist that I personally wasn't aware of. However that's just one piece of this informative documentary. At the core and heart of this film is the journey of four artist trying to show their art in a very competitive world of Hip Hop. Whether it's Dumbfoundead competition in the battle rap scene, Awkwafina making a name for herself with the hit "My Vag" or Rekstizzy non PC music video or Lyricks confliction with religion and his love for Hip Hop. The film paints their journey in a real limelight not pulling back on the social commentary, frustration and stereotypes that they face trying to get their art seen. Each artist has a chance to tell their backstory so you can connect with each one of them. Personal interviews with friends, family members and other artist makes this a very personal documentary for the artist that you can't help but connect with them and place yourself in their shoes.

However no matter how talented or refreshing the artists are they still have to deal with the stereotypes and double standards. A few examples without entering into spoiler terrority. 1. Dumbfoundead is conducting an interview and one of the first question he's ask is who will win a fight Jet Li, Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan. Your here to promote your art and get ask a stereotypical question like that. 2. The battles rap disses on Dumbfoundead that show the mindset some have of Asians. 3. The feedback of their music when Salima (Director) took it around to certain media and record label outlets. This part of the film is where it hit me how the entertainment industry as a whole decides on artist either on first impression or with a their own perception. As Salima shares some of the music of Dumbfoundead, Awkwafina, Rekstizzy and Lyricks you get to see the reaction as the outlets feel when they hear the music. One of the parts that made me realize this is when you hear Salima reveal Lyricks artist name. Immediately you see the faces of the outlets write him off before the music even plays. How can you listen, view and understand someone's art if you already have it in your mind you don't like the artist name? This just doesn't apply to Hip Hop or music but everything in entertainment in general. Their are countless people who are written off based on first impressions and that's extremely unfair. Shouldn't you see, hear or watch the whole product before you say next. It's like they didn't even give it a chance. While they did offer constructive criticism I felt those outlets already had the notion of what they feel an artist should be and wasn't really open minded to alternatives.

The social commentary is what really brings the film home for me. Seeing the struggle, the frustration and obstacles of these artist trying to break the mold and set their mark into this world is great. You can't help but cheer for them and hope they all find their success. The film is an eye opener for Hip Hop fans who didn't even know about other rappers besides Black and Latino rappers. However you can't just look at this as a Hip Hop movie even though the rap industry is the basis of the film. You can view this as a whole for Asian entertainers trying to break that mold, that perception of what people view as an Asian American. Be prepare to have your eyes open to a different side of things. Be prepare to have your perspective challenged and most importantly be prepare to Google a lot of these artist. Trust me once you hear the lyrics, the flow and styles of these artist you will be hitting the Google, Soundcloud to hear more. "Bad Rap" is far from bad and it's one of the most engaging documentary I've seen this year at Tribeca Film Festival. This film has a voice that needs to be heard.

Final Grade 4 out of 5 Stars.