(AllHipHop News) BET jumps headfirst into Black Music Month with a documentary series called “The Message,” which will chronicle the changes in Hip-Hop since its inception in the 1970’s.
Stephen Hill, president of Music Programming and Specials for BET, said the network was excited at this 4-part series.
“Hip hop is a seed planted and nourished amongst the ‘broken glass everywhere’ of mid-70s New York. It has grown to be a worldwide phenomenon and the dominant culture of at least one generation,” Hill said in a statement. “This exciting series examines the origin and the path of the music and message, taking care to objectively analyze its factions and movements.”
The show features a number of luminaries including Russell Simmons, LL Cool J, Ice Cube, MC Lyte, Funkmaster Flex, Pharrell, Kendrick Lamar, Doug E. Fresh and many others.
The show airs tonight at 10pm and will run every Wednesday during June. Below is a summation of each week’s episode.
Episode 1 – The Birth and Proliferation of Hip Hop – The premiere episode traces the roots of Hip Hop from its birth in New York and spread to California with limited support from the mainstream media. Watch your favorite rapper reminisce on the first time they heard Hip Hop and be transported to the block parties, DJ Kool Herc’s sound system and the infectious rhymes of the Universal Zulu Nation and Grandmaster Flash. Premieres June 4 at 10:00 pm
Episode 2 – Trials and Tribulations – Will Hip Hop be able to grow up in a world that is no longer just about peace, love, unity and having fun? Hip Hop faces its first roadblocks with violent realities and extreme opposition from those who disagree with its messaging. Meanwhile, a new voice begins to form. Premieres June 11 at 10:00 pm
Episode 3 – Women, Cash, Clothes – Hip Hop explores a new reality of lasciviousness, wealth and entrepreneurship characterized by fast cars, big jewelry, the birth of the video vixen and the start of popular clothing lines including Rocawear, Sean Jean and Wu Wear. Premieres June 18 at 10:00 pm
Episode 4 – The Digital Revolution – The Internet creates new opportunities for Hip Hop to change the face of America. From the rise of the first major Internet superstar rapper Soulja Boy to the infamous 360 deals, this episode explores the future of Hip Hop. Premieres June 25 at 10:00 pm
For more, go to BET.