Celebrate the long-awaited DVD release of THIS IS THE LIFE with the Legendary Good Life Reunion Concert.  Don't miss this ONE-TIME ONLY LANDMARK EVENT.
 

House of Blues. March 10.  7:30 SHARP.
 

Cut Chemist.  Chali 2na.  Myka Nyne.  Abstract Rude.  Pigeon John.  CVE.  Medusa.  Volume Ten.  Ellay Khule.  Busdriver.  2Mex.  Xololanxinxo.  Ganjah K.  Born Allah.  Omid.  DJ KiiLu.  Hosted by Garth Trinidad.
 
 

Legendary already.
 
 

Ticketmaster, Livenation.com and HouseofBlues.com for tix.
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THIS IS THE LIFE storms onto DVD March 10, 2009!

More details at www.goodlifelove.com!
 

Hi Fam:

THIS IS THE LIFE makes its long-awaited New York premiere at the Urbanworld Film Festival in a few days!  The details of our two screenings are:

THIS FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 12 @ 9PM

THIS SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13 @ 1PM

Urbanworld Film Festival 08 Sponsored by BET
AMC Loews 34
New York, NY

Tickets at www.fandango.com

We'll see you there!

~ goodlifelove ~

Hey Fam,

I'm a little late jotting down thoughts about our experience at DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK in LA last week.  One word could pretty much sum it up:

RIDICULOUS!

Yep... famed, superdope director Allison Anders curates LA's coolest presentation of movies about music each year, and she selected THIS IS THE LIFE as the very first hip hop film in the festival's history.

We took the honor and ran with it, packing the charmingly indie Silent Movie Theater on Fairfax & Melrose to the friggin rafters!  Every seat was taken, and then some.  Fools were sitting on the floor in the aisles!  The fest and the theater were dope in letting us totally VIOLATE & OBLITERATE the fire code.  It was hazardous up in there!  LMAO!  A fantastic crowd of hardcore heads and newbies were treated to the film and - dare I say - a star-studded Q&A.  It was a grand night. 

DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK was the debut of the film's final cut.  Anyone who saw it at LA's Pan-African Film Fest in January saw a work-in-progress.  So if you missed it this last time, you bess' make sure you catch the next go round to see the final film!

The next time I hit you up about LA, it'll be about a SERIOUSLY INSANE screening PLUS once-in-a-lifetime reunion show that will have jaws DROP-PING.  Trust!  You don't even wanna know.  You can't handle it.  I'ma ease you into it 'cause its that serious. :)

In the meantime, we're hitting up the Big Apple in a soon-to-be-announced (tomorrow) pair of high-profile screenings.  It'll be the film's first time in NY, so if you're on the east coast, it's your chance to experience the true story of the LA underground.

On behalf of the coldest crew in LA (Omid, Spencer, Isaac, Krishna & Ellene), thanks to everyone who came out to DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK, especially my brothers Ab Rude, Chali 2na, Cut Chemist, Born Allah, Hines, Hymnal, sister Monique Matthews and the man B+.

Until again...

~goodlifelove~

Eve

We all already know this but.... MEDUSA is the QUEEN of LA hip hop. 

Undisputed.

And the queen made her presence felt in Boston on August 1 as a special guest of the Roxbury Film Festival on behalf of THIS IS THE LIFE.

After the screening, she was interviewed in an exclusive Q&A by an editor at Essence Magazine about the LA underground and her own personal musical legacy.

Thanks to Medusa for representing the family in Boston!  We love you.

Also, this week, THIS IS THE LIFE unspools at Martha's Vineyard African-American Film Festival.  So if you are vacationing at your summer mansion, make sure to check that out!

~ goodlifelove ~

a quick dispatch from atlanta where we just screened 'this is the life.' .  we were invited to show the film by the prestigious national black arts festival and couldn't have been more hyped.

the crowd was so lovely and enthusiastic.  the q&a with ava afterward was smart and lively.

the afterparty and overall promotion was orchestrated by original goodlifer, atl transplant and overall diva phala/sister oshun.  she is a true goddess and looked out for the project in the best way.  thank you phala!

the afterparty at django on peachtree that she planned was extra special because original lifers and atl transplants akil the mc from j5 and mean green were in the house!  they rocked the mic right, along with about 4 other very talented local artists.  it was a good time!

next up?  los angles at DON'T KNOCK THE ROCK on thursday, july 31!  

NEXT UP:

July 25 | National Black Arts Film Festival | Atlanta

July 31 | Don't Knock The Rock Film Series | Los Angeles

August 1 | Roxbury African-American Film Festival | Boston

August 5 | Martha's Vineyard African-American Film Festival

AWARDS:

WINNER, Best Documentary Audience Award - Pan-African Film Festival 2008 (Los Angeles)

WINNER, Special Jury Mention, Documentary - Pan-African Film Festival 2008 (Los Angeles)

WINNER, Audience Favorite Documentary - ReelWorld Film Festival 2008 (Toronto)

WINNER, Festival Audience Award - Langston Hughes African-American Film Festival 2008 (Seattle)

OFFICIAL SELECTIONS:

Black Lily Music Festival 2008 (May)

San Francisco Black Film Festival 2008 (June)

FROM UGS MAGAZINE | Canada

By Jon B.

Amidst the East coast vs. West coast hoopla of the 1990s with corporate America's clutch on the "gangsta rap" aesthetic in popular music, there was relief for those heads who upheld that abstract hip hop idealism. South Central Los Angeles was host to a small percentage of people who wanted to express themselves through hip hop music, unhindered by the mainstream-peddled, ultra-violent crime rap.

The Good Life began as a community event bringing the youth together, distancing them from the violence of their neighborhoods. On Thursday nights in South-Central Los Angeles, a squad of rappers, writers, djs and onlookers gathered in a heath food store at Crenshaw and Exposition and transformed it into a huge cipher. The venue provided a platform for rappers to perform their material and it became a testing ground for Los Angeles' independent rap scene. With impromptu critiques provided by the audience, some performers encountered criticism when the crowd chanted: "please pass the mic!" The rule was that when the audience spoke, one had to pass the mic to the next rapper–no exceptions. Swearing was not permitted and those who broke that rule were asked to "please pass the mic!" as well.

Ava DuVernay (a.k.a. MC Eve of Figures of Speech) is the director of This Is the Life, a new documentary chronicling the night and its participants; many of whom (Chali2na, Cut Chemist, Abstract Rude, Myka Nyne, and P.E.A.C.E. to name a few) are staples in West coast hip hop music.

Ms. DuVernay was a student at UCLA when a friend decided to try his hand at the mic, enlisting her to be part of his crew with the premature expectation that he would not get booed off stage if he rolled with a posse. Of course he did have to "pass the mic," but the experience left an indelible impression on DuVernay and together with "a couple of girlfriends" decided to get involved on a regular basis.

After getting over my giddiness at her screening in Toronto, I met with Ava DuVernay and we discussed her film, female rappers and of course, the current state of hip hop.

CLICK TO READ THE Q & A:

http://ugsmag.com/interviews/ava-duvernay/

FROM EXCLAIM MAGAZINE

This Is The Life
Directed by Ava Du Vernay
By Thomas Quinlan

Winner of the audience award at the Pan-African Film Festival in L.A. and the Reel World Film Festival in Toronto, documentary film This is the Life hopes to expose the hip-hop movement that grew out of the Thursday night open mic at small South Central, L.A. health food store the Good Life Cafe.

First-time director Ava DuVernay, a participant at the weekly event as one half of female rap duo Figures of Speech, was able to offer more insight and attain better interviews than any outsider possibly could. Through rare live footage and talking head interviews from the likes of Abstract Rude, Myka Nine and P.E.A.C.E. of Freestyle Fellowship, Cut Chemist and Chali 2Na of Jurassic 5, Pigeon John, 2Mex, Medusa and more, Ava spotlights a positive hip-hop movement intent on developing new styles and flows created under a strict set of rules (such as "no swearing allowed"), bringing together a disparate range of MCs, from hardcore street rappers Chillin Villain Empire to Christian MC Pigeon John.

This is the Life shows the rise of underground champions Freestyle Fellowship and Jurassic 5, credits Ganjah K with the whole chronic craze prior to Dr. Dre or Cypress Hill, reveals P.E.A.C.E.'s split personality disorder (three of them are women!) and claims that both Ice Cube and Bone Thugs & Harmony later adopted flows created by Good Life MCs. And despite all that, fighting for the biggest highlight is Fat Joe getting booed off the stage — and even without any live footage graffiti artist Mear's chalk drawing recreation is a suitable, and stylish, substitute.

With the media's tendency to spotlight the negatives of hip-hop, it's refreshing when something like this comes along to put a positive spin on the culture. The fact that it happens to be a well-made documentary without a wasted moment makes it even better. This is a must-see for hip-hop fans.

(Forward Movement)

Hi Fam,

Ava here, just back from gorgeous Seattle with good news to report. 

THIS IS THE LIFE won the festival's 2008 Audience Award! 

Three audience awards.  Three festivals.  A ridiculous record - and all thanks to the Good Life family worldwide who love the artists - and the music - and what the GL stood for.

Extra-special-couldn't-have-done-it-without-you thanks goes to my brother Gabriel Teodros.  A dope emcee and an amazing man.  He singlehandly orchestrated getting the film up to Seattle and getting folks to come check it out.  Plus, he put together this AMAZING Good Life Revisited after event, complete with a list, a host, no cursing and Please Pass the Mic in full effect.  Dope!  Words aren't enough, Gabe. 

Thank you to Karen Toering and all the wonderful people at LHAAFF who made the fest run so smoothly and successfully.

Gratitude goes to Deena and Andre for shuttling me around, and to Lani for killing the promotions.

A big shout-out to Seattle's finest - Daniel, Matt, Kwame and everyone at the Hidmo.

Much love to Pigeon John and Abstract Rude who pulled in their fans for the event.  Thanks brothers.

And my champion for this trip, Xololanxinxo, who hooked us up with the Seattle underground in a serious way.  Thank you, Danny.

Special thanks to Tilane, our festival coordinator, who is the epitome of support and sunlight.  Thanks for showing me your city.

Finally, to our co-editor Spencer Averick, who is the epitome of "Ride or Die."  Love ya much and so happy you rolled with me.  Had fun with you as ALWAYS!

Next stop... Philly!

Ever onward!

A.