The director/writer of the movie Bodied, Joseph Kahn came back home to Houston Tx to talk about his work on the film and what it all means. He is accompanied by the two leads in his film Calum Worthy and Jackie Long. Review of the film will be released November 1st after the embargo is lifted.
Bodied is a Roast
Kahn: It's a satire, so we're roasting everything. We're roasting Hip-Hop, we're roasting the people making fun of Hip-Hop, we're roasting misogyny, we are roasting anti-misogyny. We are taking everything and turning it upside down and examining everything.
Coming back to Houston
Kahn: It is always a pleasure to come back home. Number one i have a house here. This is where I started. I love meeting houstonians, we are a very different city. I feel like we have a lot less anger in Houston than other places. Other places have a lot of stuff to work out. There is a sort of base level civility that's in Houston that i feel that the rest of the country doesn't have. Its a special place.
With a lot of different music and moves how did you integrate yourself in this movie?
Worthy: Well the hardest part as the artist was learning how to rap. I had never rapped before. Joseph reminds me, sometimes, that I was the worse rapper to read for this role. So I went to rap school and trained by the greatest battle rappers in the world. In terms of the multicultural aspect, it was wonderful. It was really fun. Battle rapping is inherently very multicultural which makes this very special. It didn't matter where you came from, what your history was, we all connected from the artform perspective.
Long: The most interesting part was the dialog. Its telling a story in the battle raps. So you have to pay attention and listen to whats going on, cause if you miss the littlest thing you can miss a whole fun part.
Kahn: Here's the big thing. Its a multicultoral movie but its not a kumbyya movie. The world today is very tribal. We have factions of people arguing with each other. On social media peopple are arguing with each other. The dialog has changed in the last two or three years. The fortuitest thing about Bodied when we constructed it is its about that dioalog. its one thing when we all agree but what happens when we disagree. You might be offended by jokes but then your laughing at the expense at someone else, its a battle rap. I sucker punch you, I take you places that you won't expect it to go.
How Should Rappers handle none black rap fans using the N word.
Long: I grew up with that word. Being a black person that word will be around us forever. If you have the power to have your fans never say it then you've done your job. But I do not have a problem with my white & mexican friends saying nigga to me. At the end of the day its a word. There is so much going on in the world. I've been hearing it all my life and its never going to change. I could be talking to a friend on the phone and he could say "iight then, my nigga" its so natural now that it will slip out.
Do you think Hip Hop has taken blame for the popularity of the word?
Long: For sure Hip Hop. I would blame hip hop because you gotta think. NWA what did it stand for? Niggas with attitude. You hear it from females and male. Rap is always going to be accepted and I don't care what generation you're in, you're going to hear nigga. So it is what it is and rap is to blame.
Once our interview wrapped Sean asked one final question unrelated to the movie Bodied but was curious enough to ask and generate a response. If you could remake any movie which would you do?
Kahn: Raiders of the Lost Ark
Long: Harlem Nights
Worthy: Forest Gump
These were three very interesting answers.
Full interview coming to our podcast: blogtalkradio.com/t3medias
