A Detroit-based hip-hop artist is the subject of a new documentary film released on Apple Music.
Danny Brown: Live at the Majestic follows Brown’s life and visits with him on tour.
Stateside host Lester Graham spoke with the film's director Andrew Cohn, who is also from Michigan.
Listen to the full conversation above, or read a highlight below.
Graham: Throughout the documentary and throughout Brown's music, weed, ecstasy, and alcohol are central. At different points, he says he's not sure he could make music without drugs, and off the stage, your film rarely shows him without a blunt, a bottle, or a glass of cognac. Why was that important to your film?
Cohn: “Well I didn’t want to overlook any part of his personality, and so to not … address it head-on I feel like was doing it injustice. I wanted to understand."
"And I think he’s not unlike a lot of artists. You know, as self-destructive as drugs and alcohol can be – and he says it in the film, you know – he’s written a lot of great songs on drugs. And so, you know, there’s this, a bit of a conflict in it and you can hear it in his voice when he talks about ... his addictions very openly and honestly in his music and in the film. And I think that what I wanted to do was paint a portrait and give audiences an understanding – especially younger kids – of what that’s like.”
Watch the trailer below (contains adult language):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dSH6dH5P46I
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