"Queens Reigns
Supreme: Fat Cat, 50 Cent and the Rise of the Hip Hop Hustler," the critically-acclaimed
debut novel by New York Magazine contributing writer Ethan Brown, is coming to
the small screen.
The Mottola Company has optioned film and television rights
to the book, which takes a look at how the streets and housing projects of southeast
Queens, New York took over the rap industry during the 1980s and ’90s.
The book also examines the infamous southeast Queens crews and
their connections to gangster culture in hip hop today.
Thomas D. Mottola, founder of The Mottola Company, will serve
as executive producer for the project, along with producing partner Jeb Brien.
The duo will develop the novel for television.
"While it’s obviously an honor to work with a music industry
icon like Tommy Mottola what makes this project such a thrill for me is that
Mr. Mottola truly grasps what ‘Queens Reigns Supreme’ is all about," Brown
told AllHipHop.com. "I can’t imagine a better team to bring ‘Queens Reigns
Supreme’ to television than the folks at the Mottola Company."
The book, based on police wiretaps and exclusive interviews
with drug kingpins and hip-hop insiders, offers insight into the rise and fall
of reputed hustlers like Lorenzo "Fat Cat" Nichols, Gerald "Prince"
Miller, Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, and Thomas "Tony Montana"
Mickens.
"This is by far one of the most visual stunning and engrossing
stories to debut in a very long time," Mottola added. "Immediately
after reading it, I contacted Ethan and we decided that it was a natural for
television. We were very fortunate in that Ethan saw eye-to-eye with us on exactly
how to take this from the printed page to the screen, without sacrificing its
visceral account of an American-born subculture that’s at once colorful,
exceptionally influential and, given the violence, tragic."
The novel chronicles a 25-year period, from the violence of
the crack era to Run DMC to the infamous murder of NYPD rookie Edward Byrne,
to the feuds between Ja Rule and 50 Cent.
Brown, who resides
in New York, writes about pop music, crime, and drug policy for publications
such as Wired, New York, Rolling Stone, The Village Voice, and GQ.
