A few years ago I was at the Vera Project watching my friends RA Scion and Sol perform on Halloween during a show that was hosted by Olympic speed skater J.R. Celski. I had never met an Olympian before, let alone an Olympic medalist (he won bronze in 2010), so I struck up a conversation with Celski between sets.
I don’t remember a lot about our conversation but I do remember being surprised when he told me he was working on a documentary about the development of the local hip-hop scene. He said part of the film’s focus is about how the scene has been able to become its own unique beast consisting of multiple styles and sounds, making it unlike anything else happening in other music scenes around the country.
Today, two years and change after my brief encounter with Celski, the trailer for said documentary has made its way onto the Internet. The film, ‘The Otherside,” looks like it’s going to be a thorough examination of what’s been happening with local hip-hop over the past five or so years. Watch the trailer above and check out the film’s poster, which gives you a sampling of some of the knowledgeable names featured in the film (be sure to click on the image to enlarge the poster), below. The film doesn’t have a release date yet (fingers crossed for SIFF) but you can learn more about the documentary over here.
