Detroit Legend Streetlord Rook Expands Creative Footprint With New Film “One More Flip”

Explain your history and influence as a member of the legendary Detroit rap group, StreetLord’z.

It goes back before I was an actual member. StreetLord’z members are mostly family and the members that aren’t blood-related — our parents knew each other so, we grew up together. When I joined, I was the youngest member, so everyone called me “Rook” (Rookie), which should tell you about our competitive nature within the group. We all were passionate about the music we created. When you’re making music with arguably some of the greatest ever to do it like Blade Icewood, Juan, and Yacht impelling us — we created a culture. Thankfully, our music still sits at the top with other artists today. The clothing brand I created called 100% Hustlers is still one of the most sought-after brands today — and our ambition as a crew still inspires people today.

How does music play a part in the conception of a film project?

For this film, in particular, music played a heavy factor in how it was created. One of my writers and producers is a heavy fan of our music and didn’t feel we should hide from the influence music has in the City of Detroit. There’s always an undertone presence of Detroit music. One of our biggest artists, Sada Baby, is one of our stars which we couldn’t ignore. Royce Da 5'9 and Payroll Giovanni also made appearances in the film as themselves. We couldn’t make a story about Detroit without acknowledging the rap culture of Detroit. It means too much here for us to ignore.

How do you feel about the evolution of Detroit street music?

It’s great. I couldn’t be more excited for all of the new artists and what they’re achieving. Each generation has its group of guys who help move the bar forward. I’m just happy to be here to witness it.

With so many great artists, I don’t want to mention anyone in particular because I’d look back at this and say, “I forgot 20 others”. We’ve always had the talent and the unique sound, so I’m just glad to see these guys get recognized by the world like they deserve.

Talk about your new movie, One More Flip, and the impact you expect it to have in the culture of Detroit films.

The movie One More Flip is about choices, decision-making, and how they can affect your life. I feel like if I can help a young man or a woman to make a better decision, then I’ve done my job. A lot of times, people make choices without seeing the story all the way to the end, then in up in bad situations. We all struggle at times to make the proper choices in all walks of life, from business to relationships and friendships. I can’t say the impact I expect it to have on the Detroit film culture. I can only say I sought out to make a film that showcased the talents we have around the city. From the production team to the talent, we all wanted to showcase we’re as great as anybody in the world. I feel as though we checked all boxes.

Aside from One More Flip, what are some other upcoming creative projects you’re working on?

Currently, we have more than five upcoming projects. We also have one in post-production called Chedda Boys. Street Lord’z OCB is still in the development stage. As of now, we’re not going to announce all of our titles, but we’re expanding into different genres. We do plan to begin production on our next project as early as April. Also, there’s a soundtrack for One More Flip coming with a lot of great Detroit talent from Royce the 5'9, Payroll Giovanni, Sada Baby, the StreetLord’z, and others.

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