HIP HOP UNCOVERED — Pictured: Executive Producer/Main Contributor Eugene “Big U” Henley. CR: FX
Hip Hop Uncovered is based on the real life or death stories of Eugene “Big U” Henley, Christian “Trick Trick” Mathis, Deb Antney, James “Bimmy” Antney and Jacques “Haitian Jack” Agnant. Five individuals who shaped hip hop from behind the scenes. At its beginnings, with the backdrop of the Reagan Era, Hip Hop Uncovered is an in-depth, thought-provoking docu-series that explores hip hop’s connection to the street hustle — the emergence of a heroin epidemic and eventually, crack flooding into cities like New York, Los Angeles and Detroit.
In 1980’s and 90’s Los Angeles, Executive Producers Jimmy Chris and Big U were quite notoriously enemies. Chris was a Blood and Big U, a Crip. Now, these previously sworn enemies are coming together to tell their stories like never before. Big U, Deb Antney, Trick Trick, Bimmy and Haitian Jack are at the very core of hip hop. You may not know their names, but they financed, managed, produced and bridged — they were at the pinnacle of an untold world. On the streets they learned the business of the drug trade. A brutal, unsustainable existence marked by loss, injury and incarceration. Hip hop was a way out. Whatever they learned on the streets, they channeled into making hip hop an undeniable force in music and American culture.
Hip hop is the first music genre black people have held onto as their own. It is the poetry of the streets, telling stories that had never before been given voice in such a visible way. There are many notable artists, executives and contemporaries lending their perspective to this series: Dr. Dre, Snoop Dog, Ice T, Mike Tyson, Jermaine Dupri, Wiz Khalifa, Nick Cannon, T.I., The Game, Mally Mall, Waka Flocka Flame and many more. Big U, Deb Antney, Trick Trick, Bimmy and Haitian Jack are vital to the historical cannon of hip hop. It’s important that history knows who worked to elevate hip hop from the streets to the most powerful artform in the world.
Hip Hop Uncovered premiered on Friday, February 12, 2021 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on FX and be available the next day on FX on Hulu. The six-part series will air two episodes each week.
We got a chance to speak with the executive producer, BIG U behind the six-part documentary about ‘Hip-Hop Uncovered’, sustaining longevity in hip-hop, favorite memory of Nipsey Hussle, the current state of rap music, his favorite rapper turned actor + much more.
Hip-Hop Interview Highlights:
Executing Producing ‘Hip-Hop Uncovered’.
What Motivated Him To Leave The Get Up & Get Out?
Whose Story Was The Most Fulfilling In His Opinion?
Why It’s Important To Tell Stories Of People Behind The Scenes.
How He’s Sustained Longevity In Hip-Hop.
Favorite Rising Stars In Hip-Hop?
Current State Of Rap Music.
Favorite Rapper Turned Actor In Hip-Hop?
What RESPECT. Means To Him.
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