Hip Hop 50: Showtime Kicks Off Three Year Initiative With Three New Documentaries

This December, Showtime will kick off Hip Hop 50, with the release of the documentaries Video Music Box (w/t), Ricky Powell: The Individualist and Rolling Like Thunder beginning Friday, December 3. Hip Hop 50 is a multiyear, cross-platform programming initiative between Showtime and entertainment company, Mass Appeal, celebrating the 50^th anniversary of Hip Hop.

Video Music Box (w/t) chronicles the longest-running music video show in the world, Video Music Box, launched and hosted in New York City by visionary DJ and MC Ralph McDaniels. Since its debut in 1983, Video Music Box has remained a Hip Hop mainstay, with McDaniels (or “Uncle Ralph,” as he’s known to legions of fans) serving as a leading Hip Hop influencer, tastemaker and documentarian, showcasing and debuting Hip Hop videos and introducing viewers to future stars like Nas, Jay Z, LL Cool J, Nicki Minaj and Fat Joe long before they were icons of the genre. With four decades of never-before-seen footage from McDaniel’s packed vault, the film spotlights the series’ global influence on Hip Hop, along with his professional and personal triumphs. Video Music Box is produced by Mass Appeal for Showtime. Video Music Box (w/t) is directed by Emmy and Grammy Award-winning music legend and Mass Appeal partner Nasir “Nas” Jones. The film will air Friday, December 3 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. 

Ricky Powell: The Individualist tells the against-all-odds-story of New York City photographer Ricky Powell, who rose to worldwide fame while capturing one of the wildest, most electric times in popular culture. From the Beastie Boys to Run DMC to Madonna to Warhol and Basquiat, Powell documented the music, fashion and art scenes of the 1980s and ’90s in downtown New York. Powell became known as “The Rickster” – a man who wasn’t just covering the scene, he was the scene. Josh Swade directs the film and is produced by Time Studios and Swade Films. Ricky Powell: The Individualist, directed by Josh Swade, will premiere Friday, December 10 at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

Rolling Like Thunder plunges into the secret underground world and history of freight train and graffiti culture, uncovering stories of myth-like artists, remarkable romances, competitive graffiti crews, and battles with the institution. As street art’s widespread integration bursts into the mainstream vibrancy via posters, books and high-end galleries, the film takes viewers back to the origin of the art, in one of its most extreme and risky forms. The film explores the train graffiti subculture from turn-of-the-century markings to modern-day masterpieces, forever linking the art form with America’s landscape. Rolling Like Thunder reveals the anonymous outlaws of freight writing who put life and limb on the line for an obsession to share their voice through their artwork. The film is directed by Roger Gastman and produced by Mass Appeal for Showtime. Rolling Like Thunder, directed by Roger Gastman, will premiere Friday, December 17 at 8 p.m. ET/PT. 

Hip Hop 50 will continue to run over the next three years and will encompass unscripted series and features, podcasts and digital shorts by and about some of the foremost names in the genre, culminating with the 50^th anniversary of the genre in 2023. The initiative is driven by Nas and Mass Appeal Chief Creative Officer and Emmy -nominated partner Sacha Jenkins (Wu-Tang Clan: Of Mics And Men, Bitchin’: The Sound And Fury Of Rick James).