Okayplayer Artists In The Movies Starring Jill Scott, Common, Mos Def, Black Thought, and More.
In the daily decline of the music business, OkayArtists stay selling records (see Common, Kweli, Jill, & Amy Winehouse who have all made recent appearances at the top of the Billboard chart). And while the bar lowers for record sales, music artists find other outlets to showcase their talents and put money in their pockets, such as by starring in hit movies. Jill Scott, for instance. E! News proclaims “Jill Scott is a breakout” and AOL says that she “plays the role effortlessly.” Go to the official ‘Why Did I Get Married?’ site and if you’ve already seen it, get in on the discussion.
With the highly anticipated debut of ‘American Gangster’ on November 2nd approaching (trailer links: 320 | 480 | 640 | 720), news of more roles for Common were recently reported to include that of Green Lantern or Martian Manhunter in the upcoming ‘Justice League’ movie. That would be different.
One person who might not make the red carpet for the premiere of ‘American Gangster’ is rapper/actor T.I. (still from the movie) who was denied bail yesterday for a litany of gun charges. This is just bad for Hip-Hop. Not only does it encourage the negative perception and “I-told-you-so-isms” from the media and middle America, but T.I. is one of a few Hip-Hop superstars left that could have actually used his celebrity and voice to lead and influence. *SMH*
Read B.Kyle’s account for how the arrest of T.I. affected Common’s BET Hip Hop Awards experience. Sad (on multiple levels) but true.
Actor/Rapper (get it) Mos Def has reportedly signed to Downtown Records (most notably known to you as the home of Gnarls Barkley). Seems like a good fit. (What the heck ever happened with True Magic? That was the strangest album release I’ve seen.) Meanwhile, Mos is heating up the silver screen co-starring along side Jack Black with what looks like a HILARIOUS movie called ‘Be Kind Rewind’ directed by Michael Gondry. Watch the trailer and post your thoughts.
Black Thought returned to acting this summer for a roll in actor/first-time director Mark Webber’s (Broken Flowers) film ‘Explicit Ills.’ Shot in Philadelphia, the film also stars Rosario Dawson; Paul Franklin Dano (Dwayne in Little Miss Sunshine); Naomie Harris (the voodoo princess in Pirates of the Caribbean); and Lou Taylor Pucci (Thumbsucker).
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Amy Winehouse featured in movies pretty soon. She certainly could be type cast (figure out the type on your own). In the mean time, we just learned of her “I Told You I Was Trouble: Amy Winehouse Live From London” concert DVD.
And that concludes our Okayplayer’s on the screen report…
dantana