Critically-acclaimed actress Sanaa Lathan can now add director to her long list of achievements after making her directorial debut in the film On The Come Up.
The riveting Paramount+ film follows the journey of a 16-year-old female rapper named Bri who takes the rap game by storm following the death of her father, a hip hop legend who died to gun violence. Film critics have praised the film for its raw authenticity and sheds light on the “smoke and mirrors” of show business.
The film features a star-studded cast, including Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Cliff “Method Man” Smith, Mike Epps, Lil Yachty, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Justin Martin, Titus Makin, Michael Cooper Jr., GaTa and Jamila C. Gray.
“I always thought it was fascinating that this was set in the world of battle rap which is very different from radio rap,” Lathan said in an AllHipHop interview. “It’s a different skill set. They have their own world. They have their own stars within that world. There’s a lot of bad ass females in that world. I mean so I really kind of dove in.”
The Brown Sugar star said she collaborated with rap phenomenon Rapsody to help write all the battles portrayed in the film – which she said gave the film the extra edge it needed to resonate with the audience. “I thought Rapsody did such an amazing job. I feel like they came out pretty well. I’m happy with how [she] did.”
The film stems from a book bearing the same name and written by American young adult author, Angie Thomas, who is best known for her book The Hate U Give. Her second novel, On the Come Up, was released in 2019. The film, Lathan says, was directed to attract young people and get them involved in the story in a relatable way.
“We knew kids are so sophisticated, and this is a movie for everybody, but it’s really targeted towards young people,” said Lathan. “You know I wanted to get them involved in the story, and I think the best way to do that is to speak to them in their language.”
When asked who her top five MCs were, she said “Lauryn Hill, Rapsody, Nicki, Nas, Kendrick and Jay,” and added that she hopes audiences will be connected enough to the story where they get something.”
Stream On The Come Up on Paramount+ now.
