Netflix has put a smile on face of old school hip hop fans with the debut of a trailer for “Roxanne Roxanne,” a biopic examining the life of Queens-born rapper Roxanne Shanté aka Lolita Shanté Gooden.
Shanté is most famous for “Roxanne’s Revenge,” a Marley Marl-produced battle single she recorded in 1984 at the age of 14. While there were female rappers in existence at the time, Shanté was the first to gain wide acclaim, and in so doing blazed a path for all female rappers to follow.
Co-produced by Pharrell Williams and Forest Whitaker and directed by Michael Larnell, the film made its debut at the Sundance Film Festival in January of last year. In a break out role, Chanté Adams plays the role of Roxanne Shanté with Mahershala Ali as an abusive boyfriend and Nia Long playing the role of her super mean mom.
In press, Netflix wrote, “In the early ’80s, the most feared battle MC in Queens, New York, was a fierce teenage girl with the weight of the world on her shoulders. At the age of 14, Lolita “Roxanne Shante” Gooden was well on her way to becoming a hip hop legend as she hustled to provide for her family while defending herself from the dangers of the streets.”
The film will premieres globally on Netflix on March 23, 2018.
Check out the trailer as well as “Roxanne’s Revenge” below. There’s also an image of Shanté performing recently.
