Shapeless, Like Water

For Jimmy Smith, Jr., life is a daily fight just to keep hope alive. Feeding his dreams in Detroit's vibrant music scene, Jimmy wages an extraordinary personal struggle to find his own voice - and earn a place in a world where rhymes rule, legends are born and every moment… is another chance.

Time Is Illmatic is a feature length documentary film that delves deep into the making of Nas' 1994 debut album, Illmatic, and the social conditions that influenced its creation.

The story follows Sasà, a 13-year-old boy living in the suburbs of Naples. He spends his days with friends, listening to rap music and dreaming of becoming a famous rapper to provide a better life for his young mother, Rusè. Their bond is close, but it's tested by jealousy, poverty, and harsh circumstances. When Sasà meets legendary Neapolitan rapper Yodi, his dream seems within reach. However, the harsh realities of the music industry and street life force him into drug trafficking to support his mother.

"Notorious" is the story of Christopher Wallace. Through raw talent and sheer determination, Wallace transforms himself from Brooklyn street hustler (once selling crack to pregnant women) to one of the greatest rappers of all time: The Notorious B.I.G. Follow his meteoric rise to fame and his refusal to succumb to expectations - redefining our notion of "The American Dream."

Desperate for a breakthrough as she nears the big 4-0, struggling New York City playwright Radha finds inspiration by reinventing herself as a rapper.

A struggling young dancer joins forces with two breakdancers and together they become a street sensation.

Bay Area rapper Mac Dre began his career at 18 and quickly became an influential force in early west coast hip-hop. In 1992 he was convicted of conspiracy to commit bank robbery when his lyrics were used against him in court. He left prison with a new lease on life, founded an independent record company, and then was murdered just when he began to emerge as a star. For the first time ever, his mother Wanda reveals the true experiences of a hip-hop legend.

Former Marine Louanne Johnson lands a gig teaching in a pilot program for bright but underachieving teens at a notorious inner-city high school. After having a terrible first day, she decides she must throw decorum to the wind. When Johnson returns to the classroom, she does so armed with a no-nonsense attitude informed by her military training and a fearless determination to better the lives of her students -- no matter what the cost.

A struggling rapper finds a way in when he is approached by a more respected, hardcore rapper.

Four Harlem friends -- Bishop, Q, Steel and Raheem -- dabble in petty crime, but they decide to go big by knocking off a convenience store. Bishop, the magnetic leader of the group, has the gun. But Q has different aspirations. He wants to be a DJ and happens to have a gig the night of the robbery. Unfortunately for him, Bishop isn't willing to take no for answer in a game where everything's for keeps.

Noumouké, from the suburb of Paris, is about to decide which brother's foot steps to follow - the lawyer student Soulaymaan or the gangster Demba.

An in-depth look at the personal life of rapper and singer Nicki Minaj, whose fast-paced rap style and interesting alter-egos connected with audiences all over the world.

An aspiring DJ, from the South Bronx, and his best friend, a promoter, try to get into show business by exposing people to hip-hop music and culture.

This DVD follows DJ Shadow and Cut Chemist on a limited tour of their "Product Placement" mix sessions. These sessions are only two DJs, four turntables, and all 7" 45 rpm records. The dual virtuosos of the turntables wow crowds from Tokyo, London, and San Francisco.

Dcumentary directed by Alberto Arvelo, which is a record for the posterity of as the first five decades of the career as the projection into the future of "La Super Banda de Venezuela". It is related from the present with interesting testimonies and electrifying performances in concert.

Having forged a 20-year run as one of the most innovative and influential hip hop bands of all time, the Queens NY collective known as 'A Tribe Called Quest' have kept a generation hungry for more of their groundbreaking music since their much publicized breakup in 1998. Michael Rapaport documents the inner workings and behind the scenes drama that follows the band to this day. He explores what's next for, what many claim, are the pioneers of alternative rap.

Even though Nelli's parents have the perfect career and man planned for her, she dreams of becoming a singer. In a studio, she meets a young hip hop artist Sune and asks him to help her make a demo tape.

This documentary film examines the transformative power of lyrics in the world of hip-hop music. Through dynamic archival footage, in-depth interviews and excursions with artists like Nas, Tech9, J Cole, Rapsody and Anderson. Paak, the film explores the many dimensions that hip-hop poetics occupy.

The story of a Finnish rap artist Cheek and his brother.

Mauro Mateus dos Santos was known by another name: Sabotage. Growing up amidst poverty in São Paulo, the musician, who became a legend after his death, is one of the most important names in national rap.