Blacking Up: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity (Trailer)

From the press release:

"Showing the parallels between the figure of the white hip-hopper and previous incarnations of white identification with black culture, BLACKING UP: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity highlights a lineage that includes blackface performers such as Al Jolson, jazz figures like the "hipster" and the "white negro," and rock-and-roll icons like Elvis Presley. White participants in the film discuss where they see their place in hip-hop, reflecting earnestly on how they have been affected by the words "wigger" or "wannabe." Black participants debate what white adoption of hip-hop might mean today, considering past instances of appropriation and mockery of black cultural expression. All participants' praises and criticisms contribute to an understanding of how race functions in America today."

"Notable entertainers, historians, and cultural critics also contribute to the discussion, including Amiri Baraka (cultural critic/author of Blues People), Russel Simmons (CEO Def Jam Records), Chuck D. (rapper for Public Enemy), Vanilla Ice (rapper), DJ Kool Herc (hip-hop's "founding father"), Paul Mooney (comedian/writer for The Chapelle Show, among others). BLACKING UP: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity examines race as something that we all experience – a shared part of American culture – and provides an inclusive, open dialogue that includes perspectives from multiple generational and racial vantage points. BLACKING UP: Hip-Hop's Remix of Race and Identity is a co-presentation by WTIU/Bloomington, IN and the Independent Television Service (ITVS)."

Official Site: Blacking Up

Over at Hip Hop Press:
PBS DOC, BLACKING UP: HIP-HOP'S REMIX OF RACE AND IDENTITY, EXAMINES RACIAL IDENTITY IN AMERICAN CULTURE TODAY