Shot in a hardscrabble farming community in the Arkansas delta, the documentary Rap Squad is about the aspirations of African American high school students and the teachers and education administrators trying to provide them with new opportunities to create and learn.
The film follows two intertwining tracks. The first concerns a school club for teen rappers to write and perform songs about their lives, tragedies, and dangers in their community. Led by a buoyant, passionate teacher endlessly encouraging of students who are writing from a place of honesty, the club—called Rap Suad—becomes all the more essential in the film’s other storyline.
That one concerns an uphill battle by the school district to get a new property tax passed in the county, a measure that would raise a relatively modest $22 million to construct a new school to replace the crumbling structure currently in use. That earnest effort, bolstered by Rap Squad appearances at rallies, runs against resistance from a predominantly white rural community already feeling overtaxed during an economically perilous time.
Of course, there are other obstacles to contend with, too, including outright racism by some anti-levy forces. It’s easy to get caught up in the drama of Rap Squad along with the heartfelt ambitions of kids trying to tell us about the truth of their lives. Several students and adults emerge as strong characters in this story, which helps anchor ideals in colorful personalities. Strongly recommended. Aud: E, I, J, H, C, P.