Six Part Docu-Series Includes Exclusive Account of Tupac’s Murder from an Eyewitness in the Shooter’s Car
BET Networks is bringing audiences the definitive story of the most infamous record label in history: Death Row Records. Death Row Chroniclesdetails the unprecedented rise, fall and redemption of Death Row with compelling interviews featuring Death Row insiders including co-founder, Marion “Suge” Knight. Viewers will also have access to never-before-seen archival footage and a firsthand, eyewitness account of Tupac Shakur’s murder. Part 1 and 2 kick off the six-part, three-night docu-series on Tuesday, February 20, 2018 at 10:00PM ET.
In 1991, mega producer Dr. Dre, Suge Knight and rapper The D.O.C., with support from convicted criminal Michael “Harry-O” Harris, started a record label that put the rap world on notice that hip-hop would no longer be dominated by the East Coast. Dre released the label’s first multi-platinum project “The Chronic”; Snoop Dogg followed up with his own multi-platinum debut “Doggystyle”; then Tupac’s first record after being released from prison “All Eyez on Me” solidified Death Row’s position as the hottest label in the business. In a short time, Death Row skyrocketed into prominence. But their success story began to garner as much attention for its mayhem as it did for its music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9arrStd5EF8
The climb to the top of the music industry was propelled by Suge Knight’s intimidation tactics, including a battle with politician and activist C. Delores Tucker who vied for federal reform to get their music censored, contractual disputes involving Suge Knight and disgruntled artists and gang ties to the street which would prove fatal for Tupac. In the series, viewers will hear an exclusive account of Tupac’s murder from an eyewitness inside the shooter’s car and previously undisclosed details about the incident discovered during an LAPD-led, joint task force investigation.
With gripping testimony from Suge Knight, artists Kurupt, Michel’le, Danny Boy and others, in addition to unreleased footage and music from the Death Row vault, this series will take audiences deep inside the history of the renowned label and the legacy it left behind.
Death Row Chronicles is produced by Entertainment One (eOne) and Creature Films. eOne’s Tara Long and John Morayniss serve as executive producers with Creature’s Mark Ford, Kevin Lopez as well as showrunner Mario Diaz.
ABOUT BET NETWORKS BET Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIA.B), is the nation’s leading provider of quality entertainment, music, news and public affairs television programming for the African-American audience. The primary BET channel is in nearly 85 million households and can be seen in the United States, Canada, the Caribbean, the United Kingdom, sub-Saharan Africa and France. BET is the dominant African-American consumer brand with a diverse group of business extensions including BET.com, a leading Internet destination for Black entertainment, music, culture, and news; BET HER (formerly CENTRIC), a 24-hour entertainment network targeting the African-American woman; BET Music Networks – BET Jams, BET Soul and BET Gospel; BET Home Entertainment; BET Live, BET’s growing festival business; BET Mobile, which provides ringtones, games and video content for wireless devices; and BET International, which operates BET Networks around the globe.
He was loved everywhere, and a mutual fondness endeared him to generations of gospel musicians, singers and listeners. He and his siblings helped shaped the course of gospel music in the late 60’s and were the architects of the sound now recognized as contemporary gospel music. The Hawkins Singers have individually and collectively chartered a course for gospel musicians and singers to follow, still to this day. Dr. Edwin Hawkins passed away on Monday January 15,2018.
For his impact, the four-time GRAMMY Award winner was heralded appropriately and colloquialized as “the Father of Contemporary Gospel”. His impact on sacred music has been felt far and wide and celebrated in audiences of all racial and age demographics. Whether through a recording, seminar or his annual Music and Arts Conference, Dr. Hawkins committed himself to enriching the sound and art of gospel music ministry and performance. Dr. Hawkins’ last recorded album “Testify” was released in 2008 but his work didn’t end there. When not working on his own music, he wrote for and produced many songs and albums for rising and independent gospel artists.
Hawkins’ performance with the San Francisco Symphony last December was a bit of a dream come true with reflective vastness of the reach of his genius. The pen was mightiest in Dr. Hawkins hand, he gifted us with a rich catalog of music that included much more than “Oh Happy Day”. Though his reputation preceded him, his demure demeanor often precluded the public from lauding him in the manner his discography deserves. Undoubtedly, his indelible mark on gospel music, will never be forgotten.
Songs like: “Kings and Kingdoms”, “Worship the Lord” and even “This Day” are sang in moments of worship, even though many singers and musicians are unaware they are Edwin Hawkins gems. Please keep the Hawkins’ family in your prayers as we pause to remember the man that touched the world and wrote the song(s) that made the whole world sing!
Friends, family and gospel luminaries are coming from far and near to celebrate the robust life of Dr. Hawkins. Scheduled to perform at the star-studded celebration filled with friends, family and beneficiaries in the gospel community he so graciously poured into for decades are: Donnie McClurkin, Marvin Winans, Bebe Winans, Beverly Crawford, Anita Wilson, LaShun Pace, Ted Winn,
Melonie Daniels-Walker, Chrystal Rucker, BSlade, Minister Carole King, Tibari and Bishop Yvette Flunder.
Donald Lawrence will serve as musical supervisor and Derrick Hall who was Dr. Hawkins’ music director is the celebration bandleader. Gospel innovators Kurt Carr and Ricky Dillard will step in as guest choir directors alongside Jonathan Grier and Rusty Watson, musical director for the Love Center Choir. The original Edwin Hawkins Singers will unite for a performance as will The New Edwin Hawkins Singers and the Dream Team. The two- day celebration will not feature a eulogy but Central City Productions (The Stellar Gospel Music Awards) founder Don Jackson, Bishop Carlton Pearson, Dr. Mary Beth Gentry and one of the first artists to ever stand in his shadow, Min. Richard Smallwood will stand to share remarks and reflections.
The two-day celebration of life for Dr. Edwin Hawkins begins tonight and will continue tomorrow evening at the Harbor Light Church in Fremont, California. The celebration is open to the public and viewing convenience for those unable to attend has been provided by local CBS affiliate KPIX, also viewable on Dr. Hawkins’ Facebook page.
Service info and details graciously provided by The Hawkins family.
In November 1991, a Korean convenience store owner convicted of fatally shooting African-American teenager Latasha Harlins was given no jail time by a white Los Angeles judge. Six months later, four police officers caught on videotape brutally beating unarmed black motorist Rodney King were acquitted of assault by a predominantly white Simi Valley jury. The King verdict sparked a wave of violent protests, looting and arson that lasted several days and left more than 50 people dead, thousands injured and large swaths of Los Angeles — including many Korean-American-owned businesses — in ruins.
Twenty-five years later, National Geographic Documentary Films explores the events leading up to the violence, as well as the chaos and destruction that ensued, in the new documentary LA 92. Told entirely through stunning and rarely seen archival footage, the film captures the shock, disappointment and fury felt by many Angelenos, particularly those in the African-American community, following the outcomes of the back-to-back, highly publicized trials. In the case of the King beating, it was the first time the kind of abuse many had witnessed or experienced at the hands of LAPD officers was recorded and broadcast for the world to see, leaving some with the sense that if justice did not prevail despite such graphic evidence, it never would.
On April 29, 1992, those emotions boiled over into unbridled mayhem that began in the predominantly black area of South Central Los Angeles and quickly spread to other parts of the city. The situation was exacerbated by the slow reaction of first responders and delays in deploying National Guard troops by then Governor Pete Wilson to secure the area.
LA 92 offers a riveting glimpse of a major American city during some of its darkest days. Viewed from a multitude of vantage points, the film brings a fresh perspective to a pivotal moment that reverberates to this day.
LA 92 is produced by Lightbox in association with National Geographic Documentary Films. For Lightbox, producers are Simon and Jonathan Chinn. For National Geographic Documentary Films, the executive producer is Matt Renner and Tim Pastore is president of original programming and production.
LA 92 premieres on the National Geographic Channel at 9pm EST/8 pm CST
Listen to the On the Record podcast with directors Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin
ABOUTTHEPRODUCTION In 2016, with the 25th anniversary of the violence in Los Angeles approaching — and angry protests over police misconduct once again erupting in cities throughout the U.S. — award-winning producers Simon Chinn and Jonathan Chinn knew it was the right time to revisit the tumultuous events of 1992.
“The LA riots happened a quarter century ago, but we are still struggling with the root causes of those riots today,” says Jonathan Chinn. “It’s clear from the events that occurred in Ferguson and Baltimore last year that as a nation we are still finding our way in terms of escaping the cycle of racial oppression, police brutality, socioeconomic inequality — and the inevitable protest that results from these things.”
The Chinns, cousins who together run the prolific multimedia production company Lightbox, pitched the idea to National Geographic Documentary Films by cutting together a “mood reel” of archival footage from the period. “The next day, Nat Geo called us to say they were interested in commissioning it as a feature documentary,” says Simon Chinn, who won Oscars for producing the documentaries “Searching for Sugar Man” and “Man on Wire.”
“Simon and Jonathan are insanely talented filmmakers, experts at telling provocative, timely stories in unconventional ways,” says Tim Pastore, president of original programming and production for National Geographic. “As our country continues to wrestle with racial injustice, the LA riots are as relevant and as raw today as they were 25 years ago — we knew they’d do this story justice.”
To direct the ambitious project, the producers turned to Dan Lindsay and TJ Martin. “Dan and TJ are just incredible filmmakers,” says Jonathan Chinn, an Emmy winner whose credits include the FX series “30 Days” and PBS’ “American High.” “Their film ‘Undefeated’ is a masterpiece of verite documentary filmmaking. They approached this topic with such thoughtfulness and artistic flair that we knew the film would be in very good hands under their care.”
Lindsay and Martin, who hail from Rockford, Illinois, and Seattle, Washington, respectively, hadn’t yet graduated high school in 1992. So, like many Americans, their previous knowledge of the events of that year was based mainly on their recollections of a few iconic moments they had seen on television. “Most of us tend to remember the Rodney King tape, the Reginald Denny incident at Florence and Normandie and the ‘Can’t we all get along’ speech that Rodney King gave,” says Lindsay.
But when the pair saw the reel of less well known footage assembled by the producers, they were stunned. “I was shocked to see some of those images,” says Lindsay. “Like the scenes of Korean merchants defending their businesses. And the moment when an African-American store owner named Art Washington pleads with looters and asks them why they’re doing what they’re doing. Those were things I hadn’t seen.”
The filmmakers were convinced that the passion conveyed in videos like those would tell the story far more eloquently than any narrator or “talking head” interviews could. “Our guidepost is always to find the emotion in the experience and immerse the audience in it so they can come to their own conclusions intellectually and emotionally,” says Martin. “Rather than interviewing someone and presenting them as the authority on the subject matter, our intention is to put the viewer back in the experience and have them wrestle with the conflicting emotions the city and the country were going through at the time.”
ABOUTTHEFILMMAKERS DAN LINDSAY and TJMARTIN (Co-directors) have been collaborating since 2007 and are co-directors, co-editors and co-cinematographers of the feature-length documentary “Undefeated.” The film premiered at the 2011 SXSW film festival, where it was purchased by The Weinstein Company for North American distribution. In 2012, the film won the Academy Award for Best Feature Documentary, making Martin the first director of African-American descent to win an Oscar for a feature-length film. The film was also nominated for Best Documentary at the Critics’ Choice Awards and Black Reel Awards and has won numerous festival awards, including the Special Jury Prize at DOC NYC and Audience Awards at Indie Memphis and the Chicago International Film Festival. “Undefeated” also had the honor of making its international debut at the Toronto International Film Festival.
In 2012 Martin was listed on Ebony magazine’s Power 100 list alongside President Barack Obama, Professor Cornell West and LeBron James, to name a few. That same year, Martin received the award for Outstanding Achievement in Directing from the Seattle International Film Festival.
Martin and Lindsay have also directed several short-form pieces across various platforms, including” My Favorite Picture of You.” That film has screened at numerous film festivals and has been featured on “The Atlantic” and “Dazed.” In 2014 it was chosen as a Vimeo Staff Pick and nominated for a Webby Award.
As commercial directors, the duo has have helmed campaigns for companies as diverse as Facebook, Prudential, Honey Maid and The United Negro College Fund. In 2014 Honeymaid’s “This Is Wholesome” campaign and Prudential’s “Chapter Two” campaign were each honored with a Gold Lion at the Cannes Lions Festival.
In 2015 Martin gave a talk at TEDx on Orcas Island, Washington, titled “Reimagining America’s Culture Narrative,” in which he used his own experiences to discuss race and diversity in the film and television industry and in the media.
Lindsay was born and raised in Rockford, Illinois, and graduated from the University of Missouri in 2001. Martin was born and raised in Seattle, Washington, and graduated from Fairhaven College at Western Washington University, where he studied American cultural studies. He and his directing partner are represented at William Morris Endeavor and managed at Principato-Young. Commercially they are represented by Furlined.
LIGHTBOX (ProductionCompany) is a multinational media company headquartered in London and Los Angeles focused on creating high-quality nonfiction programming for film, television and digital platforms. It was founded in 2014 by two-time Academy Award winner Simon Chinn and his Emmy award-winning cousin, Jonathan Chinn.
Prior to co-founding Lightbox, Jonathan Chinn worked as one of the most respected nonfiction television showrunners in the U.S., winning an Emmy for his work on the genre-defining series “American High” (Fox/PBS) and the Television Academy’s prestigious Honors Award as the executive producer and showrunner of “30 Days,” which became FX’s highest-rated unscripted series. Over the past 15 years, he has built up an eclectic body of work that runs the gamut from documentary to formatted reality, all unified by a sense of authenticity and character-driven narratives, with credits including “The Residents” (Discovery), “Freshman Diaries” (Showtime), “Kid Nation” (CBS), “Hotel Hell” (Fox) and “Push Girls” (Sundance).
Simon Chinn is one of the world’s most successful feature documentary producers, with two Academy Award-winning films, “Man on Wire” and “Searching for Sugar Man,” to his credit. He has produced or executive produced many other critically acclaimed and commercially successful theatrical documentaries, including “Project Nim,” “The Imposter,” “The Green Prince” and, most recently, “My Scientology Movie,” starring Louis Theroux, which was the highest-grossing British feature documentary of the past year.
Simon and Jonathan’s partnership represents a seamless melding of two distinct but compatible backgrounds and a strongly shared creative sensibility. Since its founding in 2014, Lightbox has produced many notable projects for the U.S., U.K. and international film and TV markets, including the groundbreaking eight-part series “Captive”for Netflix; the ESPN “30 for 30” film about the 2006 Duke lacrosse scandal titled “Fantastic Lies”; twodocumentary films for Xbox Entertainment Studios about the digital revolution, “Atari: Game Over” and “The Thread”; the eight-part investigative series “The Traffickers”for Fusion; “Inside British Vogue”for BBC, which followed a year in the life of the iconic fashion bible; and “The Runner-Up”for Esquire, which chronicled Clay Aiken’s improbable and unsuccessful run for a U.S. congressional seat in North Carolina.
Upcoming projects include the only authorized documentary about legendary pop icon Whitney Houston, directed by Academy Award-winning director Kevin Macdonald; “Warchild,” a film for Channel 4 about the Syrian refugee crisis told from the perspective of three children; and “Bare Knuckle Fight Club,” a co-production with C4 and FX Productions. Drawing on its unique and longstanding relationships with the best creative talent in the industry, Lightbox continues to develop acclaimed nonfiction content in the rapidly changing landscape of unscripted programming.
