The documentary on groundbreaking hip-hop group A Tribe Called Quest will hit theaters this summer.
According to Billboard.com, Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest will premiere in New York and Los Angeles on July 8, eventually rolling out to 32 more cities completing its run on August 12.
The film has been the subject of controversy ever since group frontman Q-Tip objected to it via Twitter:
“I am not in support of the a tribe called quest documentary…. The filmmaker should respect the band to the point of honoring the few requests that were made about the piece. The filmmaker should respect the band enough to honor our request regarding the the film.”
He later elaborated on the subject, saying,
“It’s not that we don’t agree with the film. As a film, it’s just not finished, there’s some holes in it. You know it’s tough when you’re an up-and-coming director and you’re working on something out of your pocket, you’ve been working on it for a long time, you kinda wanna see it. ‘Ok, here it is, let’s go.’ And you start speeding a little, not saying that this is the case, but one can connect the dots.”
Director Rapaport, an actor who has appeared in dozens of films, including Higher Learning and Bamboozled, decided to make the film back in 2006 while attending a Tribe show. He recently addressed Q-Tip’s concerns in an interview with Billboard.
“The differences Tip had, I think, came down to the fact that he’s an artist and a perfectionist who is always in control. He was the leader of Tribe. But I’m making the movie, and I have to make the final decisions. He’s accustomed to making all of the decisions. I have thought about it a lot, and if somebody made a movie as interpersonal as this about me, I don’t know that I’d be pleased with someone else making the decisions. To me, it’s a love letter to the band.”
The release schedule for the film is below.
7/8
NEW YORK
Sunshine Empire
Magic Johnson
LOS ANGELES
Arclight Hollywood
Century City 15
Criterion Santa Monica
7/15
SAN FRANCISCO
Metreon
Kabuki
CHICAGO
Century Centre
River East
CineArts Evanston
WASHINGTON, DC
E-Street
Georgetown
Bethesda Row
Shirlington
Magic Johnson
7/22
SAN DIEGO
Hillcrest
BOSTON
Kendall Square
Boston Commons
Embassy Waltham
PHILADELPHIA
Ritz 5
Ritz Center Voorhees
MINNEAPOLIS
Uptown
ATLANTA
Midtown
Phipps Plaza
SAN FRANCISCO – ADD ONS
Shattuck
Century Mountain View
Marin Sausalito
CineArts Santana Row San Jose
7/29
DALLAS
Angelika
Angelika Plano
HOUSTON
Edwards Greenway
AUSTIN
Violet Crown
Arbor
SEATTLE
Pacific Place
Metro
Lincoln Square Bellevue
PORTLAND
Cinema 21
MILWAUKEE
Oriental
DETROIT
Uptown Birmingham
8/5
PHOENIX
Tempe Marketplace
MADISON
Sundancen Cinemas
MIAMI
Regal South Beach
ST. LOUIS
Tivoli
CLEVELAND
Cedar Lee
CINCINNATI
Esquire
HONOLULU
Kahala
8/12
SAN ANTONIO
Bijou
AMC Huebner
COLUMBUS
Gateway
AMC Lennox
DAYTON
Neon Movies
KANSAS CITY
Palace
AMC Studio Olathe
SALT LAKE CITY
Broadway
INDIANAPOLIS
Keystone Art
PITTSBURGH
Regent
NEW ORLEANS
Canal Place
Elmwood
CHARLOTTE
Manor
RALEIGH-CHAPEL HILL
Colony Raleigh
Chelsea Chapel Hill