Eddie Murphy co-produced and stars in Dolemite Is My Name, a new film that looks at the creative pursuits of Rudy Ray Moore. Murphy, who plays Moore and his alter-ego "Dolemite," began plans to make the movie more than 15 years ago. He recently recalled telling the Arkansas native, who... Read more

This month, Eddie Murphy stars in Dolemite Is My Name. The new film, available in theaters and on Netflix, finds the star actor playing the late Rudy Ray Moore, who died in 2008 at the age of 81. Moore created the "Dolemite" persona, which made films, albums, and merchandise. Appearing... Read more

For 50 years, Rudy Ray Moore was a force in comedy. A native of Fort Smith, Arkansas, Moore learned to command audiences as both a preacher as well as a nightclub dancer. Eventually moving to comedy, Moore would begin a recording career in the late 1950s that lasted until his... Read more

One of the more acclaimed independent releases of 2018 is Noname's Room 25. The Chicago, Illinois-based lyricist dropped her self-funded effort back in September without an accompanying set of videos ahead of arrival. With more than a million monthly streams on Spotify, the accolades warrant the visuals to the LP that... Read more

It's only the second month of the year, and already New Orleans MC Curren$y has released two free collaborative projects. In January, it was The Owners Manual with Cool & Dre, and in February arrived The Carrollton Heist with the Alchemist. Named after a major thoroughfare in Crescent City, Heist... Read more

Known for roles in films like Black Belt Jones, Enter The Dragon, and Three The Hard Way, Jim Kelly was a familiar face to lovers of 1970s low-budget films. At drive-in's and grind-houses, these works may be today remembered as Blaxploitation works—statements on race and culture, big on stereotypes and... Read more

"Black Dynamite," the Adult Swim animated adaptive series following the action film ran for two seasons. Film director and writer Scott Saunders joined actor Michael Jai White for the cartoon, including vocal contributions from Kym Whitley ("The Boondocks") and Tommy Davidson ("In Living Color"). After some cult acclaim—especially by Blaxploitation... Read more

Before she was one of the more active celebrity Twitter accounts, Pam Grier helped define an era of film. In title roles like "Foxy Brown," "Coffee," and later, "Jackie Brown," Pam Grier was a true ass-kicking heroine, fighting systems of oppression based on both race and gender. Through Blaxploitation films,... Read more

Hip-hop has long been influenced by the cinematic soul of the 70's. Whether you're a fan of Big K.R.I.T. or Biz Markie, UGK or Snoop Dogg, Dr. Dre or Just Blaze...you can hear the influence of music from films like Shaft, Super Fly, The Mack, The Payback. Here's a playlist... Read more