Dir. Henrik Burman
Swedish Rapper Yung Lean started his career rapping with his friends over lo-fi dreamy beats featuring lyrics about video games, Arizona tea, and classic rap music tropes ranging from drug use to sleeping with models and celebrities. As an artist, he has struggled with addiction, mental illness, and the death of close friends throughout his time. All of this shaped the now 24-year-old into a serious musician making truly great music. This documentary honestly captures his rise to fame, the struggles he faced, and how he is overcoming them.
Dir. James Marcus Haney
No Cameras Allowed feels like a story that could only exist in fiction or some time long ago. It is the story of a young man who snuck into some of the biggest music festivals in the world from Lollapalooza to Coachella to Glastonbury and found himself touring with major acts like Mumford and Sons as their photographer somewhere along the way. This documentary is inspiring, emotional, and a reminder of how important it is to take risks in life.
Dir. Sam Jones
Besides being one of the most important albums to me personally, Wilco’s Yankee Hotel Foxtrot has been lauded as a timeless, inventive, and brutally honest masterpiece earning a 10 from Pitchfork upon its release in 2002. This documentary captures the making of the album that would cement the band and frontman Jeff Tweedy as legends. It captures conflict with the label, conflict within the band, and the conflict Tweedy faces with himself. The album is a must-listen, and the documentary is a must-see.
Dir. Mat Whitecross
Two brothers who rose from nothing to the top of the charts became the biggest band in the world at one point. Supersonic documents Oasis’s rise to fame which included the sex, drugs, and alcohol lifestyle that is intrinsic with Rock and Roll. We see a retrospective look at how fame at such a high level impacted relationships and culture forever.
Dir. Thomas Morton
Vice’s web series captures the burgeoning Chicago rap scene in 2014. It focuses on the star of the Chicago “drill rap” style, Chief Keef, but features other important figures like producer Young Chop, Lil Durk, and Lil Reese. It takes an in-depth look at how the gang violence of Chicago’s southside impacts the music and the lives of the people who make it.