''Backstage'' is a 2000 American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

directed by

Chris Fiore Chris Fiore is a US film writer, director and producer. Career He wrote the recently optioned ''The Utopia Virus'', an original feature-length screenplay set in New York City's dystopian streets in the near future. He is currently in post-produc ...

, chronicling the 1999 Hard Knock Life Tour that featured several of hip hops top acts including

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one o ...

DMX Earl Simmons (December 18, 1970 – April 9, 2021), known professionally as DMX, was an American rapper and actor. He began rapping in the early 1990s and released his debut album ''It's Dark and Hell Is Hot'' in 1998, to both critical acclaim ...

Method Man Clifford Smith, Jr. (born March 2, 1971), better known by his stage name Method Man, is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is known as a member of the East Coast hip hop collective Wu-Tang Clan. He is also half o ...

and Redman. Produced by

Damon Dash Damon Anthony Dash (born May 3, 1971) is an American entrepreneur and record executive. Dash is best known as co-founder of Roc-A-Fella along with Jay-Z and Kareem Burke. Early life Born in New York City, Dash swept the floors of a local bar ...

, ''Backstage'' featured live performances by several members of Def Jam's roster and gave an in-depth look at what happened backstage.

Cast

Main cast

* Redman *

Beanie Sigel Dwight Equan Grant (born March 6, 1974), better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became known for his association with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut ...

* Ja Rule *

Memphis Bleek Malik Deshawn Cox (born June 23, 1978), known by his stage name Memphis Bleek, is an American rapper who was a protégé of fellow New York rapper Jay-Z. Cox started his own labels: Get Low Records in 1998, and Warehouse Music Group in 2016. He ...

DJ Clue? Ernesto Shaw (born January 8, 1975), better known as DJ Clue, is an American disc jockey (DJ), record producer, radio personality and record executive. Early life DJ Clue was born in Queens, New York City to Panamanian and Jamaican immigran ...

* Amil

Additional cast

*Jeremy Dash * DJ Scratch * Eve *

Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...

*Pain in da Ass *

Chuck D Carlton Douglas Ridenhour (born August 1, 1960), known professionally as Chuck D, is an American rapper, best known as the leader and frontman of the hip hop group Public Enemy, which he co-founded in 1985 with Flavor Flav. Chuck D helped creat ...

Busta Rhymes Trevor George Smith Jr. (born May 20, 1972), known professionally as Busta Rhymes, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the moniker Busta Rhymes, after NFL and CFL wide receiver ...

* Sean "Puffy" Combs *

Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

Ed Lover James Roberts (born February 12, 1963), better known as Ed Lover, is an American rapper, actor, musician, radio personality, and former MTV VJ. He hosted "The Ed Lover Show" on SiriusXM's old-school hip hop station BackSpin. As of April 12 ...

Russell Simmons Russell Wendell Simmons (born October 4, 1957) is an American entrepreneur, writer and record executive. He co-founded the hip-hop label Def Jam Recordings, and created the clothing fashion lines Phat Farm, Argyleculture, and Tantris. Simmons ...

Kevin Liles Kevin Liles (born February 27, 1968) is an American record executive and co-founder and CEO of 300 Entertainment. In 2020, Kevin was recognized by Billboard Magazine as R&B/Hip-Hop Executive of the Year for both his efforts in activism and the ...

* Lyor Cohen *DJ Twinz

Soundtrack

External links

* * * * 2000 films 2000 documentary films American documentary films Concert films Dimension Films films Documentary films about hip hop music and musicians 2000s English-language films 2000s American films {{music-documentary-film-stub