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Detroit, 1995. The Mo. The Big D. Murder City. A fallen empire. Once
affluent neighborhoods have been left to decline in the wake of white
flight as the opportunity and optimism of this once thriving city
have evaporated. The shining promise of Detroit's industrial majesty
has collapsed into a heap of economic and racial polarity following
one of the worst riots in American history. 8 MILE Road, the city's
perimeter, is now a dividing line between urban and suburban, between
black and white.
But
bubbling beneath the surface of Detroit is a long history of pressure-
cooked creativity, much of it emerging in music. From the Motown
sound that dominated the popular music of the 60's to the gospel
artistry of Aretha Franklin, and on through the "Detroit sound"
of such rockers as Mitch Ryder, Bob Seger and the MC5, the music
of the city has always come from its blue-collar guts, an unfiltered
authentic expression of life's realities. Detroit's hip hop scene
is no exception.
Survival
is key in the harsh lower depths of Detroit, and for many, the current
emotional life preserver is hip hop. As an art form, rap music is
impromptu and fast-paced, topical and insightful, requiring skills
of language, nuance and keen observation, as well as emotional truth.
For people like Jimmy Smith, Jr. (Eminem), hip hop is the only thing
standing between him and the void.
In
the absence of nurturing parents, Jimmy and his friends - cool and
charismatic Future (Mekhi Phifer), optimistic dreamer Sol (Omar
Benson Miller), aspiring activist DJ Iz (De'Angelo Wilson) and slow
but steady Cheddar Bob (Evan Jones) - have created their own family.
Jimmy and his "crew" (Three One Third), live on hopes
of "getting that big deal soon," while struggling to eke
out a living at their dead end jobs and navigating the minefields
of their turbulent personal relationships. As Jimmy so bluntly puts
it: "we're all broke as shit and living at home with our moms."
At night, they feed their dreams in the hip hop dubs of Detroit
where the city's best rappers battle each other with emotionally
abusive rhymes as they vie for the respect of their peers. In the
un-poetic world of Three One Third, rhyme is wielded like a weapon
with words meant to wound. And victory belongs to the quick-witted.
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