Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme
| Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme | |
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U.S. release poster
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| Directed by | Kevin Fitzgerald |
| Produced by | Henry Alex Rubin |
| Cinematography | Todd Hickey |
| Edited by | Paul Devlin |
| Distributed by |
Palm Pictures (USA theaters / DVD) VH1 Television (USA TV) |
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Release date
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Running time
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60 mins / 90 mins (director's cut) |
| Country | United States |
| Box office | $11,255 (USA) |
Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme is a 2000 documentary film directed by Kevin Fitzgerald about the art of freestyle, improvisational hip-hop. Taking more than seven years to make, the documentary includes performances and commentary by artists such as Supernatural, Mos Def, The Roots, Notorious B.I.G., Jurassic 5, and Pharoahe Monch.
Directed by Kevin Fitzgerald (also known as DJ Organic), the history of freestyle rap is explored in the film, with a mix of performance and commentary from a number of artists. Using archive footage, the film traces the origins of improvised hip-hop to sources including African-American preachers, Jamaican toasts, improvised jazz, and spoken-word poets such as The Last Poets.
Following its 7 July 2004 release, the film grossed $4,842 in its opening weekend, and made $12,600 domestically in two weeks.
Freestyle: The Art of Rhyme was well-received, with an average score of 63 from 11 reviews on MetaCritic, and an average score of 89% from 18 reviews on Rotten Tomatoes.A. O. Scott of the New York Times described it as "a heady, rousing education in an art form that is too often misunderstood", and Fred Camper of the Chicago Reader called it "[a]n engaged and knowing look at the underground world of improvised rap, concentrating on artists less interested in commercial success and cutting records than in the 'spontaneous right now' of 'nonconceptual rhyme.'"
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