Broncos Takeover the Big Screen: A Hip Hop Story
posted by Kinaya Gibson | March 5, 2024 | In Arts and Culture, NewsOn February 23, Fayetteville State University filled AMC Theaters to attend the premiere of the comedy movie, A Hip Hop Story. The movie was written and produced by FSU alumni Affion Crockett and featured another FSU alumni Danny Ragland.
A Hip Hop Story goes through the history of the fifty years of hip-hop told through the story of Roscoe Simmons (a stand-in for real hip hop mogul Russell Simmons). Simmons’s goal in the movie is to remind the public of why hip hop is important and what needs to be done to save it.
Comedian and actor Ragland, stopped by FSU to speak about the movie, his time at FSU, and advice for students who want to succeed not only in entertainment but in their respective fields. He credits his Fayetteville- based connections for giving him the tools and connections to be able to be featured in A Hip Hop Story.
“So for him [ Crockett] to actually uplift me, like I said a brother that came from this same village that I came from, you know what I mean, to reach back, uplift me, and put me on, was just a true blessing,” Ragland said.
Ragland also shared what he believes is they key networking strategy for anyone trying to make it in their fields: “The key to networking is opening your mouth, and the moment you open your mouth that’s the moment that the next person sitting across from you will be like: you know what I want to deal with this person.”
For the past eight years, Ragland has been living in Los Angeles, California, and within five days of moving, he was receiving his first call sheet with All Def Digital, a comedy and music platform he was connected to through KevOnStage, who previously lived in Fayetteville, NC. Ragland and Crockett are true examples of how it is possible to be successful coming from a HBCUs and why it is important to represent where you were raised and molded.
If you would like to watch A Hip Hop Story, it is playing at select AMC Theaters across the nation. To watch the entire sit down with Danny Ragland please subscribe to The Voice’s YouTube channel @thevoicefayettevillestateu331.
Video Work and Photo by Trey Nemec
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.