Straight Outta LA
As part of ESPN’s “30 for 30” film initiative celebrating the network’s 30th anniversary comes this documentary from rapper-turned-filmmaker Ice Cube. The program debuts on ESPN Tuesday at 8pm ET.
In 1982, Raiders owner Al Davis beat the NFL in court and moved his team to Los Angeles from Oakland. With a squad as colorful as its owner, the Raiders captivated a large number of Hispanic and black fans in Southern California at a time when gang warfare, immigration and the real estate boom were rapidly changing the city.
The Raiders morphed into a worldwide brand as the team’s colors, swagger and anti-establishment ethos became linked with “Gangsta Rap” and the hip-hop scene that was permeating South Central Los Angeles.
Ice Cube was not only witness to the proceedings, he was deeply a part of it. As a member of the controversial rap group N.W.A., Ice Cube helped make the silver and black culturally significant to a new generation and demographic.
Still an avid raiders fan, Cube explores the unlikely marriage between the NFL’s rebel franchise and one of America’s glamour cities, showing how pro football’s outlaw team became the toast of Tinseltown.
Filmmaker Ice Cube
The SandC Interview: Ice Cube
Tell us a little about how the idea came about
ESPN approached us wanting us to do a story more dear to our heart than just some fantasy. I thought hard about how pro sports directly impacted my life. I thought about the LA Raiders and their image and what they meant to the city of LA. And how it coincided with the REAL LA. You know people think LA is Showtime, but not the LA where I come from. South central, Compton, long beach, watts a lot more grit than glamour.
The Raiders with that outlaw mentality was the perfect team for our city.
And by them winning a Super Bowl it put LA on the map in a different way. It did it with the hard core fans. It was a perfect marriage.
Did the Raiders embrace those gritty hard core fans form the start or is it something they absorbed after it was readily evident?
When it comes to the fans, we felt betrayed by the Rams. We felt we needed a winner and the Raiders arrival was a perfect fit at the right time.
Besides the budget, talk a little about how it felt to be doing a documentary as opposed to a larger-scale theatrical release.
It felt good because to me, I’m an information man. I love entertainment, but I love entertainment filled with information. This was a way to cut to the chase. No major plot points.
Talk about the kind of access, if any, you were given to Al Davis
We were given access to all the Raiders’ facilities. We have a Marucs Allen, Ice T, LA sportswriters and Greg Townsend which was crucial who grew up in Compton and played for the LA Raiders. He saw it from both ends, seeing how the raiders were thinking about us. And coming from that part of town knew what we were talking about.
Compared to say The Players Club or All About the Benjamins, how much prep time was involved and was there much research done?
We had a team of researchers tracking down archival footage and arranging interviews.
What did you learn about your subject in the course of making this film that you may not have realized or known prior to jumping in?
That the Raiders really wanted to go Hollywood (maybe they saw the Lakers success in that vein).
They loved ties with show biz. So it was less about the girt and more about the glamour.
After it is all over, did any of your pre-film perceptions of the subject change at all?
Not really as I’m telling a specific story, I want them to see the relationship how the image of the Raiders helped us, and how the image of us helped the raiders.
Their merchandising went through the roof because of folks like us, we should definitely be getting a cut. We made it so big the Kings (NHL) changed their colors from purple and gold to black and silver.
As the filmmaker, can you be as critical as fans in general?
I hope so I want it to be informed entertainment. A compelling film of history. Al Davis is the outlaw of the NFL.
