After more than a decade of appearing in front of the camera on Law and Order: Special Victims Unit, emcee Ice-T is working on his directorial debut. The documentary, The Art of Rap, will look at the roots of the game and how the world’s most successful rappers craft their masterpieces. “I’ve interviewed 50 emcees—everybody—[from] Kanye West, Ice Cube, Eminem to Melle Mell, Grandmaster Caz,” he told Billboard. “The hip hop scene [has] became so pop. I was like, ‘I’m gonna do a movie about real rappers and what inspired us.’ Maybe that’ll hit a reset button on the game and let these kids know it’s not just about a pop record. Rap can do a lot.”
Ice-T released a teaser for the documentary earlier this year. Watch it here.

(Photo: REUTERS/Lucas Jackson/Landov)