BET Networks is bringing Black Hollywood to a television forefront with its “KEEP IT REEL” franchise of Hip-Hop films.
Every Wednesday night throughout the month of April, BET will be showing a number of films that take root in Hip-Hop culture. Acclaimed films include: Notorious, Streets, Set It Off and Hot Boyz.
The catalogue boasts a slew of prominent actors including, Angela Bassett, Anthony Mackie, Naturi Naughton, Meek Mill, Queen Latifah, Jada Pinkett Smith, Vivica A. Fox, Kimberly Elise, Snoop Dogg, C. Thomas Howell, Master P and more.
Tonight kicks off the series. Make sure to catch Notorious B.I.G.’s biopic Notorious on BET, at 9 p.m. EST. Gander the gallery to learn more about the aforementioned cult classics.
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Photo: IMDB/BET
Notorious (April 2)
Notorious is the story of Christopher Wallace. Through raw talent and sheer determination, Wallace transforms himself from Brooklyn street hustler to one of the greatest rappers of all time; The Notorious B.I.G. Follow his meteoric rise to fame and his refusal to succumb to expectations – redefining our notion of “The American Dream.”
Streets (April 9)
Streets is a dramatic tale of 17 year old Nichole Gordon who begrudgingly moves to Philadelphia from the wealthy suburbs when her mother becomes the city’s new Assistant DA. As Nicole explores the city’s streets, new found friends put her in the middle of an escalating drug war and in the crosshairs of her mother’s own investigation. Starring Meek Mill (Maybach Music), Nafeesa Williams (One Life To Live), Chico Benymon (Half & Half), Omillio Sparks (Rocafella, State Property), Tray Chaney (The Wire) & Gillie Da Kid. It airs on
Set If Off (April 16)
Four women, all of whom have suffered for lack of money and at the hands of the majority, undertake to rob banks. While initially successful, a policeman who was involved in shooting one of the women’s brothers is on their trail. As the women add to the loot, their tastes and interests begin to change and their suspicions of each other increase on the way to a climactic robbery.
Hot Boyz (April 23)
Injustice begets a criminal. Kool is an artist without prospects, a black belt in karate, and in love with LaShawna, poised and college bound. One night she witnesses a stabbing and discovers the victim is a cop as he dies in her arms. She’s jailed for murder by the infamous Ramparts Division of the LAPD. Kool wants to prove her innocence, and Tully, the cynical detective in charge, ignores LaShawna’s case but uses Kool to break up an incipient crime operation. She’s in danger because the guilty parties fear that the officer talked before he died. While in jail awaiting a hearing and legal help, she’s beaten to death by a rogue cop. Kool vows revenge: the Hot Boyz are born.
