Dan Charnas wrote a veritable hip-hop encyclopedia with his book "The Big Payback: the History of the Business of Hip-Hop." Although it reads more like a novel, it is encyclopedic in the way that Charnas includes information on just about every aspect of the genre, business-wise or not.
For hip-hop fans who haven't been able to read the book, soon enough you won't have to, as the book is being turned into a made-for-TV movie by VH1. This isn't the first time they've turned a book into a VH1 movie, they turned Steve Stoute's "Tanning of America" into a four-part documentary as well.
The movie version of Charnas' book won't be exactly the same though, because to develop more of a plot line VH1 plans to introduce three fictional characters, set in '90s New York, who have aspirations of being in the hip-hop industry. They'll also be changing up the name, tentatively at the moment, to "The Breaks."
Despite these changes, you can expect Charnas to be involved quite heavily, as he will be co-writing the script and co-executive produce the film alongside Seith Mann.
As the Hollywood Reports reports, the storyline will be as follows:
The story centers around Nikki Jones, a brilliant recent grad who abandoned a scholarship to law school to pursue her dream of becoming a record exec. Her boyfriend, David Aaron, is the scrappy son of a legendary music producer who is unwilling to rest on his father’s laurels and notorious reputation. DeeVee is an aspiring producer on the hunt to find the next big rapper on the come-up. Nikki fast talks her way into an internship at the premier hip-hop company, Fouray Entertainment, and catches the eye of the label's infamous founder, while David struggles at the city's top R&B radio station whose celebrity DJ refuses to program real hip-hop. Meanwhile, DeeVee returns to his roots in the Fort Greene projects to scout for talent and runs into Ahm, a drug dealer with a lyrical gift whose talent could bring them all to the next level. But they will soon discover lives can be broken as fast as legends can be born.
Production is expected to commence in the spring, to prepare for a fall release. If the TV movie is well-received, this could turn into a full-fledged series.