A new documentary following Chief Keef, who exploded onto the rap scene as a teenage prodigy and personified Chicago drill, will chronicle his work and impact on the music industry, according to Variety.
Kenya Barris‘ Khalabo Ink Society will collaborate with multi-media company Lyrical Lemonade and Cole Bennett, who is set to direct the film. Barris and Khalabo’s Jeremy Allen will produce. The doc, which is currently untitled, will follow Keef’s meteoric rise, hiatus, and return to Chicago, while also delving into the city’s influence on his music.
Keef gained viral fame and global recognition with hit singles including “Don’t Like,” which was released when he was just 16, and “Love Sosa.” While the Chicago native is credited as a drill pioneer who helped bring the genre to mainstream audiences, his story is often intertwined with his numerous legal woes — clashes that eventually prevented him from performing in his hometown.
“I got away from all the unnecessary trouble,” the legendary rapper, who has been a resident in Los Angeles since 2014, told Billboard in 2015. “It’s better out here [in L.A.] than in Chicago, because I got in so much trouble. I like living out here. I think it improved me. It changed me, and [inspired] me to go somewhere bigger.”
After over 10 years, Keef returned to Chicago in June, headlining Lyrical Lemonade’s Summer Smash festival. Local outlet South Side Weeklycalled the moment an “unforgettable event,” which saw the “high-energy nostalgic set” feature a special Father’s Day appearance by Keef’s teenage daughter and a guest performance by fellow Chicago rapper G Herbo.
The month prior, Keef released his long-awaited Almighty So 2. Rolling Stone‘s Jeff Ihaza called the album “a polished and refined distillation of the sound Keef brought into the mainstream and, especially at this moment, feels like a bold declaration of a changing of the guard.”
