We initially ignored, or at least didn’t post on, the documentary “P-Star Rising,” about a young, kid rapper from Harlem, because it sounded like something that might be quite the novelty. Having seen the trailer just recently however, it looks pretty moving, potentially soulful and at the same time, kind of… (the story sounds interesting, the music, mmm… not so much).
It’s another film that just recently played at the Tribeca Film Festival and therefore just had a trailer recently come-up online (perhaps if Tribeca were an easier festival to navigate we may have caught it).
The interesting thing about the documentary is how it seems to bring up the issues of exploitation: pimping out your kid as a commodity and not necessarily doing what’s in her best interest.
Here’s the synopsis, and it does sound like it’s much more than just a documentary about the curiosity that is a child with the ability to rhyme (which is of itself is pretty meh and not-so-unusual).
Director Gabriel Noble follows four years of father-daughter ups and downs as they navigate the grit and the glamor of the music biz. From sit-downs with image consultants to the elation of spending that big signing bonus, Priscilla always remains a magnetic figure with a resolve and way of talking that belies her young age. Though Jesse, for better or worse, remains the rock in their lives, an emotional attempt to track down the girls’ mother is threaded throughout the film. “She became a crackhead,” Priscilla says, blasé. “Things happen, you know.”
In the early ’80s, Jesse Diaz was a rising star in the hip-hop world. Now he’s a broke single father living in a Harlem shelter with two children to support. But Jesse finally finds a shot at redemption in his nine-year-old daughter Priscilla, a precocious and immensely talented rapper. With older daughter Solsky the family’s quiet cheerleader, Jesse and Priscilla look to parlay “P-Star’s” talent into victory for the whole family. And that means long rehearsals, late nights, and home schooling for the growing girl. But as Priscilla’s star really begins to rise, it’ll tax all the relationships in her life and test Jesse in ways he never expected.
The film is actually in theaters already (started April 24, 2009), but we assume that’s in limited release. Maybe something to watch for when it hits DVD? Who knows, but it does look more compelling than we gave it credit for originally.