Following the mega-success of Straight Outta Compton, a film about the rise of ’90s gansta rap group N.W.A., the African American Film Critics Association is preparing to honor hip-hop’s contribution to cinema with an all-star celebration during their annual award ceremony.
The AAFCA, considered the largest Black film critics’ organization worldwide, will honor the 25th anniversary of Boyz N the Hood and New Jack City, two ’90s films that not only illustrated that hip-hop was a major part of the characters’ lives and culture, but also featured actual rap artists such as Ice Cube and Ice-T.
“Hip-hop has had a global impact on pop culture and influenced millions around the world,” said Gil Robertson, AAFCA’s president and co-founder in a press release. “And its impact on Hollywood has been a major game changer in front and behind the camera and at the box office.”
The association will recognize instances in other films in which hip-hop played a major role, as well as honoring the filmmakers, actors and actresses involved.
“The influence hip-hop has had on Hollywood has never been fully realized or celebrated,” said AAFCA co-founder and Fox-TV critic Shawn Edwards. “The genius and power of the culture [have] helped to produce a new genre of cinema and introduced the world to a new crop of filmmakers who all had new stories from a different perspective to share. It has more than paid off financially and critically.”
The organization will also be presenting the AAFCA’s Special Achievement Awards, for which John Singleton, Jeff Clanagan, Manohla Dargis, LeBron James and Plan B have been named recipients due to their “consistent excellence in promoting the cinematic arts,” Robertston said.
The ceremony will be held on Feb. 10, 2015, at the Taglyan Complex in Hollywood.
