Today, Andscape, the Black multimedia platform from Disney and ESPN, known as the premier platform for exploring the intersections of race, sports, and culture,” announced the new anthology franchise “&360,” which explores the massive influence of Black culture on American society. The franchise will premiere with the documentary feature “Hip-Hop And The White House, directed by Jesse Washington and featuring Jeezy, whose song “My President” was a significant hip-hop political touchstone. The film debuts April 22 exclusively on Hulu.
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The first installment in this series, “Hip-Hop And The White House,” examines the relationship between one of the most influential American cultural movements of the past 50 years and the most powerful position on the planet—the President of the United States. It is narrated by Jeezy, the Atlanta rap giant who predicted the future when he released “My President” several months before the election of Barack Obama.
The film begins by illustrating how presidential policies in the 1970s and ’80s created conditions of oppression and neglect that birthed hip-hop (“Ronald Reagan is the father of crack cocaine as far as we’re concerned,” rapper KRS-One says).
The doc then chronicles how the culture went from ignored and misunderstood by presidential administrations to courted and embraced for its unparalleled influence on American youth. The film is written and directed by Jesse Washington, who has documented hip-hop since the 1980s and has been a senior writer at Andscape since it launched in 2014 as The Undefeated. Washington’s film credits include Bearing “Witness: A Portrait Of Darnella Frazier” for ESPN+ and “March On Washington: Keepers Of The Dream” for NatGEO.
“Hip-Hop And The White House” features interviews with Jeezy, Common, YG, U.S. Representative Maxine Waters, KRS-One, Roxanne Shante, Bun B, Bakari Kitwana, Farai Chideya, Newark Mayor Ras J. Baraka, Curren$y, Dave “Davey D” Cook, Grandmaster Caz, Waka Flocka Flame, Chika, and more.
“&360” (“Andscape360”) is an eye-opening collection of documentary projects that expands perspectives and tells previously untold stories, revealing truths about some of the biggest sports and cultural moments of our time. The series will be available exclusively on Hulu with stories generated by the journalists who work at Andscape.
“We are energized by the incredible storytellers working today, and we are thrilled to use our platform to spotlight the work of Black creators,” said Jason Aidoo, VP and head of Andscape.
“We feel this is the perfect time to discuss how hip-hop has influenced presidential politics and to ask what we can expect from the culture in this upcoming election season,” Washington said in a statement. “&360 provides an incredible opportunity to explore and illuminate important stories that have never been fully told. I’m looking forward to passing the &360 baton to the next storyteller and seeing new visions come to life.”
“Hip-Hop And The White House” debuts April 22 on Hulu. Watch the first trailer below.