"d Now, July 13th, 1977 d d The blackouts Streets is looking like Armageddon d d Sweltering heat d d Suffocating as hell Within the five boroughs d d It's like the sun roasting the Earth The hood was called turf d" "d My girl was thrown out of a church Out of her home d d And by her family She's disowned d" " You call me a whore..." " You will not throw her out!" "d She's the love of my life Up to us to go on d d And everything's burning d d Buildings illuminated by the fire d d And the city was lost We're trying to save it d" "d The cross The Star of David, we lost d d We started praying to governor He a gangsta d d In cahoots with the mayor The roof's starting to cave in d d No, it's not a game All is dark, except the flame d" "d Now nothing will be the same Now, the whole world's changed d d Music is sounding different d" "d Radio stations don't pump us up, In they mix set d d Disco's still getting that airtime For big checks d" "d Yo, something gotta give d d And something gotta die So something new can live d" "d That's the way Uh-huh, uh-huh, I like it d" "It's been a good year for us." "It's been a monster year for us." "A record-breaking, history-making year for us." "But that don't mean it's been a satisfactory year for us." "Little lower there, baby." "Satisfaction, it's like gonorrhea." " Can I get an "amen"?" " Amen." " How about a "mazel"?" " Mazel." " Absolutely, Roy." " Hey." "Hey, fellas." "Somebody order a pizza?" " Jackie Moreno." " I come bearing gifts." " It's an honor to meet you, man." " The Jack Moreno." "Holy shit, I gotta shake your hand." "No, no, no." "Stay." "Stay." "Learn something." "Half the gold records on my wall, Jackie had a part in delivering." "Yeah, some of the platinum ones, too." "But who's counting?" "So, Jackie." "What's new?" "I found a girl singer, Roy." "She's pure disco." "Face like an angel." "Body, boom, boom, boom." " I have to record a demo immediately." " A demo?" "This girl's gonna make somebody armored trucks full of cash." "Considering our history... you know, I'm coming to you first." "Okay." " Do it." " For real?" " If you believe in her, why not?" "Right?" " Thank you." "Wow!" "But hey, listen, I can't do it on the "el cheapo." You know?" "She's a disco act." "I gotta have musicians." "I gotta have studio time." "I need the right engineer." " Seed money." " Seed money?" "At least five grand." "Hey, how about this?" "How about... five cents?" "I'm being serious, Roy." "So am I." "See this, boys?" "This is what you never fucking wanna be." "Yo, Jackie." "Go fuck yourself." "Come on, man." "I..." "I did a lot for you." "And I for you." "Tell you what." "You remorseless, degenerate junkie, gambling fuckhead, thieving waste of space." "Go find anybody in the record business who will work with you again and then come back and talk to me!" "But nobody will because you're dead, Jackie." "You're a..." "You're a ghost." "And you deserve it." "Because you, you are the royal flush of pathetic loser, swindling, junkie fucks!" ""Pure disco"?" "Forget it." "Go die." "A record-breaking heat wave continues" " with a daytime high..." " I mean, I hear you." "But there's always options." "You just gotta know where to look." "I am looking, and I'm telling you," " it ain't easy." " Nothing in life easy." "Ain't no peaches and cream." " Ezekiel's looking for some work." " Hold up now." "Stop the damn presses." "You mean to tell me, Mr. Phyllis Wheatley over here, that your poetry ain't making good money?" "I'm trying to raise money for a turntable." "What the hell you need to buy a damn turntable for?" "How about save up for some damn toothpaste?" "Leon, he's trying to find an honest job." "Okay." "Well, now that, I can support 110 percent." "And I think you should bring him with you." "And to that, I say:" "Hell, no." "The last thing I need is that boy mess up my money." "I think it's a great way for him to learn about hard work." "You said you was gonna make a man out of me this summer." " Oh, that's just a figure of speech." " Yeah, and you always say:" ""A man need to take initiative."" "What do you think he's doing?" " Damn it." "I do say that, don't I?" " Mm-hm." "All right." "But half your wages kick back to me." "You dig?" "Now, I gotta meet this man, Little Wolf, about some handyman gig down at the Les Inferno." " That place got shot the hell up." "So..." " Wait." "Les Inferno?" "Oh, wait." "So, what?" "Now you reneging?" "Huh?" "Oh, what?" "Handyman work ain't good enough?" " No, no, no." "I just didn't..." " Yeah." "Sure enough." "You're going down there with me whether you like it or not." "d Mama just hung her head And said, son d d Papa was a rolling stone d ...the nation's capital say the country is in a steep recession." "I gotta say, I never figure I'd see this." "Come on." "Let me see you put some elbow grease into it, cupcake." " You wanna be a handyman like me, huh?" " I just need the money." "Don't we all." "I know my cousin didn't hire you to be sitting here, drinking like it's a day at the motherfucking beach." " Get back to work." " Got here at 5:00 a.m." "Just taking a little break." "Oh, you got something to say?" "No, sir." "But we don't get paid by the hour anyway." " It's a flat rate." " Yeah?" " Well, now, it's a "you're fired" rate." " What?" " The fuck out of here." " Is he serious?" " Pack it up." " Oh, shit." "Romeo, right?" "Yeah." "Yeah, I know you." "That fine little Spanish freak you was with the other night." "What's her phone number?" "Come on." "Give up them digits." "She ain't got a phone." " Who the fuck you eyeballing?" " We worked five hours." "Who I need to see about getting paid for that?" "Sit down." "Call the Better Business Bureau, nigga." "d Heaven's in the backseat Of my Cadillac d" "Ooh-wee." "Ooh." "Get it." "Get it." "Get it, baby." "Get it." " Yeah." " Oh, I've missed you." " You like that?" " Come here." "Let me pet the lion." "See if he can let out another mighty roar." "Somebody taught you how to do that kind of championship fucking." "I know what you want, but I can give you one step better." "The opportunity to make real money." "You wanna join my family?" "Are you ready to commit to Annie?" "Hazy, hot and humid, the city is a boiling cauldron, with a daytime high of well over 100." "The historic heatwave in New York City continues." "Chicken and rice in the fridge." "Meatloaf, tuna casserole, hot dogs and bologna." " Two gallons of milk..." " Mom, tell Boo to get off." "Boo-Boo, stop messing with your sister." " Winston, we're gonna miss our bus." " Ma, how long you guys going for?" "Funeral's tomorrow in Niagara Falls," " so we'll be back on Saturday." " Cool." " Mylene, have you talked to your father?" " He kicked me out, Ms. Kipling." "For singing, Mom." " Ain't that wack?" " That's wack." "Right, Mrs. K?" "Especially because she's about to be a full-time disco star." "Mylene, tell her about Jackie." "I got a producer producing me now." "A famous producer." "Okay." "Well, you can stay while we're gone, but when we come back, we gotta figure this out." " I'm sure your mother wants you back home." " Thank you, Ms. Kipling." " Winston." " I'm here, my dear." "All right, kids." "You know the drill." "No fighting." "Mind your manners." "No biting, no strangers and no water balloons." "Give me some love." "Give me some." " Why you think it's me?" " Come on." " I'll miss you, Dad." " I'll miss you too, baby." " Yolanda, you're in charge." " What?" "Yeah, girls on top." "Girls on top." " One love, one love." " All right, well..." "All right, y'all." "Zeke's about to get back here from work, and he's gonna wanna know how much money we got." "So, Dizz, couch-duty update." "How much did you dig out of the cushions?" "So far, $1.12." "Leave no stone unturned." " And turntables?" " I fixed the burnt ones." "When we get another turntable and a mixer," "DJ Boo Nasty gonna be chilling like a villain." "Y'all are stupid for real." "Money's gonna be for our new DJ gear." "That's our thing now." "Get a air conditioner with the money, Boo." "Man, we melting in here." " Hey." " That's all?" "Just "hey"?" " Ain't you happy to see me?" " Yeah." "I'm happy to see you." " Yo." "What's happening?" " What's up, dog?" " What's happening?" "It sucked." " How was the new job?" "Come here for a sec." " Come here." " Ooh." " Ezekiel." " Stop, stop." " Yo, hope your ass brought some money." " Yeah, yeah." "Uh..." "This is my life savings right here:" "31 dollars and 18 cents." " Hey, you heard from Shao?" " Let's just get the gear." "So, with Zeke's savings added up with mine, Dizz's and Boo's, that brings us up to..." " precisely $51." " But a system costs 600." "What's up?" " Close your eyes." " Why?" "Just close your eyes." "Open them." "I didn't wrap it, but it's yours." "It's for your poems for when your old book is done." "And it's got your initials." "I got it to say thank you for helping me with my song at the church." " We were great, right?" " Yeah." "We was all right." "Thanks." "Yeah." "Stanley, hottest day of the fucking year." "My AC shit the bed." "And all I can hear from you is protocol, decorum, diplomacy, patience." " Delicacy." " Jefe." " Stan." " There are people to please." "I'm happy to meet the guy." "But unless I'm meeting with the main guy, they come here to me!" "I don't go to them." "As it happens, here's my next meeting." "Stan, para fuera." "My man." "I'm dying to hear... how this meeting went with this Asheton guy." "Well, he wants to cut a demo with Mylene immediately." "What?" "He don't wanna meet her?" " He don't wanna hear her sing?" " No." "Hold up." "This is great news, Jackie, but are you sure that's what he said?" "Hm?" "Because I did some looking into this Asheton guy and... he's a serious dude." "And Marrakesh Star is a serious label." "Uh, look, Cisco, I..." "I know where you're going, and um..." "I'm not offended." "Jackie, I'm just saying... you don't have to be afraid to tell the truth." "The truth?" "Okay, the truth is this:" "Here in the Bronx, around the card table, everybody knows that I know people, that I make records." "You know, I don't go around and advertise myself like a jerk off, you know?" "Once in a while, maybe, but you know, down in Manhattan, Cisco, on 6th Avenue, in the record business?" "People get in line to cut a demo on my say-so." " That's good to hear." " It is what it is." "Okay, so when do I get to meet with Roy Asheton?" "When do you get to meet Roy Asheton?" "Let tell you something about Mr. Roy Asheton." " Fuck Roy Asheton." " ?" "Qué tú 'tá hablando, tipo?" " You just finished saying..." " Yeah, yeah." "Of course he wants to record Mylene." " Of course he wants to sign her." " So, what's the problem?" "The problem is you're my friend." "The problem is, in all honesty, Mylene is a big-time talent." "And she looks like a good, decent girl." "She is a good, decent girl, but I ain't following you." "Roy Asheton is the Grand Poobah of the record business because he makes a gazillion dollars a year screwing over every artist that he signs." "So, we get a... hire a lawyer." " We hire a music lawyer." " He owns the lawyers." "They all do." "Look, I would love to get my debt to you off my plate, but I'm not gonna do it by fucking you over, you know?" "And the kid, Mylene, I can't do that." "I can't do that." "Que se joda Roy Asheton then." "We go to another label." "No, you don't get it." "They're all the same." "The artists sign a standard contract to record a demo." "The record company owns it." "If it pans out, they sign the act to a lowball contract and fuck every hit they can get out of them and, you know, and discard them the minute they drop out of the Top 40." "It's..." "It's all set up." "It's just a rigged game." "The only good thing about Roy is that he's got the juice to make stars." "But what's the point if he owns it all?" "I'm only being honest with you, Cisco, because out of respect for you." " And because your niece." " Espera, espera, espera." "So, how about... we record our own demo?" "You think you're the first guy to have that idea?" "No, no, listen." "We record our own demo." "You work your magic." "You make Mylene great." "And then we sell it to Asheton." "And we negotiate Mylene's contract from a position of strength." "We go to this Roy like..." "like players, not paupers." "This is expensive." "There's no guarantees either." "How much?" "To do it right, 30, 40 grand." "You come back in an hour." "Lopez is gonna have 40 large in a brown paper bag." "But this demo?" "I own it." "All of it." "And her contract too, if we get to sign." "And like you say, if this all pans out... well then, of course, you get a taste." "Claro que sí." "My niece means everything to me." "Don't fuck this up, Jackito." "d Hot stuff d" "New York City has the highest unemployment rate in America." "d The music is mighty, mighty fine d" "Look, we take our $51, and we leverage it." "Right?" "Convince Larry to put us on a payment plan." "All right?" "Ten percent down, $51 becomes $510." "And what we gotta avoid though, is predatory lending." " 'Cause predatory lending..." " I have no idea what you're saying." " No." " I'm saying, if we play our cards right, we walk out of here with mixers, turntables," " maybe even speakers." " I'm gonna wait inside, y'all." ""Inside" as in "outside"?" "Shit." "In this heat?" "Yo, is it just me today, or is it like... the Bronx is getting closer to the sun?" "How can I help you guys?" "Certainly." "We're after that Clubman 1-1 mixer right there in the window." "And the turntable." " My good man, about your payment plans..." " I gotta stop you right there." "For you guys, unfortunately, everything up in the front window is full-sticker price, or I can't help you." " No, your sign says..." " Yeah." "It says "easy credit."" "It doesn't say "let me bend over, so you could easily fuck me," right?" " Excuse me?" " Look, you guys seem like nice kids, but I got a business to run here." "And for the last six months, boys who look like you have been coming in here every day, saying:" ""Larry, Larry, hook me up with your payment plan," you know?" "And you know what they want?" "They want two turntables and a mixer." "Which is weird, right?" "And they're crying all the time, saying, you know, they need it." "You know, and they all have this look in their eyes." " Like they're on some kind of drug thing." " We are not gonna screw you." "Come on." "You know what?" "The other day... some guy comes in here, all right?" "He's ten weeks behind on his payments." "He hands me a cassette tape." "He says, "Look, it's worth $100." "It's rare." "It's dangerous to own."" "Dangerous?" "It's a fucking cassette tape." "So, I listen to it, right?" "It's garbage." "No one's singing." "There's nothing there." "It's boom, boom, scratching." "Boom, boom, scratching, scratching." "Over and over and over." "Look." "We'll..." "We'll pay you $10 for it." "Sold." "There you go." "You come in here, you want something, you show me the money," "I sell it to you." "You know, just don't fuck me." "Clarence." "Have you located that boy Napoleon yet?" "Little spic motherfucker knows our hitman." "Ma, he's hiding out in Poughkeepsie." "I got my people on it." " Well, don't keep me waiting." " I'm on it." "Shit's done." "Why this faggot here, Ma?" "Shaolin here's joining the family." "Put him to work." "Let him prove himself." "Make me proud." "Both of you." "You boys play nice." "It's hot as hell this morning, huh?" "Step to me wrong once, I'll kill you." "Tell a soul what you doing with my mom," "I'll kill you." "Breathe in my general direction, I'll kill you with pleasure." "Understood?" "Just trying to make some cash, man." "Is that a fact?" "Make this car disappear today." "Do it right, and there's $100 in it for you." "Then maybe we can talk family business." "Motherfucker." "Yo,wegotabootleg Grandmaster Flash tape, dig?" "So, what if we put a little party on?" "Yeah, I'll be Boo Nasty, pretend to play behind the wheels of steel." "I don't know." "Is all this safe?" "That bootlegger did get stomped out at Flash's jam." "We ain't bootlegged the tape." "We just gonna play it for a minute." "Charge a cover at the door and make some serious coin." "Trust me." "Flash will never find out." " This could be the VIP area." " Exclusive." "I like it." "Yeah, and we could serve Dizz's Kool-Aid punch and charge extra." "We gonna be making major motherfucking ducats, boy." "The thing about the punch is, um," "I took my last tab of lysergic acid diethylamide this morning, so..." "Dizz, not the acid punch." "The one you spike with Bacardi 151." "Oh, okay." "The special punch." "First thing tomorrow morning," "I wanna march into punk ass Larry's, put the money on the counter," " make him count it." " Real slow, baby." "Walk out with one shiny turntable and a mixer." "Ra-Ra, Dizzee, Boo-Boo." "What the hell is going on down here?" "Why the hell is all of Dad's stereo equipment and records in the salon?" "You." "Come here." " Come on, yo." " We're just having a little party." "Nuh-uh." "Mom and Dad will kill you, and then me and then you again." " We was taking about cutting you in." " Yeah." "We're charging at the door." "I want $20." " Even if no one shows up." " The people will come." "'Cause we got the secret weapon." "We got the Doomsday Machine." "  Grandmaster..." "  Boo Nasty!" "I'm here for the full wash and trim." "All right." "Come on." "d Hey, everybody d" "Full wash and trim?" "d Hey, everybody d" "Whoo!" "d Ease up your mind d" "d Ease up your mind d" "  Grandmaster..." " Boo Nasty!" "  Grandmaster..." " Boo Nasty!" "d When you walking in the sun, baby girl, Instead of the shade d d You're definitely gonna want some of Rumi's enlightened Kool-Aid d" "d Drop the beat and let's dance d d Come on d d Let's dance I got the beat d d Let's dance, come on Break it down d d Let's dance We got the beat d" "d Let's dance, come on Get down d d Let's dance d d We got the beat Let's dance d" "This is mayhem." " Oh!" " Damn, Mylene." "You filling out Regina's dress better than she do." " Shit, for real." " What are they doing to this song?" "Ruining it." "It sounds like a racket." "Yo, what happened to the singing part?" "Look at them diving on the floor and shit." "You can't even hustle to this." "They're doing the freak now." "It's just nasty." "Nasty." "Ew." "That's right." "Show them how you freak it, girl." "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" "Yeah, yeah." "Uh, I'll be right back." "  Grandmaster..." "  Boo Nasty!" " It's happening." " What?" "I'm recording tonight." " Come with me." "To Manhattan." " Uh..." "Yeah, um, you know, maybe." "Depends how it goes here." "No, fuck that." "You coming." " Why do you want me there?" " Just so you could be there." "You know?" "It's at a fancy studio and stuff, and..." " I'm nervous." " Cool, but like... sometimes, you want me around, sometimes, you don't, and... if you wasn't nervous to be going there today, I mean, for real, would you even want me there at all?" "Guess you're gonna have to come with me if you wanna find out." "What the fuck is you doing with this?" "DJ faking the funk, little midget fugazi motherfucker." "This don't fly." "And when shit don't fly, the Caesars come party-crashing." "Now, how y'all sound?" "Pretending y'all Flash?" "Flash is our boy." "Flash is your boy?" "And you do him like that?" "Take that cash." "This who we are." "We get money from Flash for making sure niggas ain't doing this stupid shit." "Yo, my man." "Hey." "We worked our asses off for that money, so, we can't be giving it up without a fair one." "How about I shoot him in the head, and then we fight a fair one?" "Yo, yo, yo." "Hey, never mind." "Hey!" "Yo!" "Hey, that ain't necessary." "And the next time we see you," "I swear to God we gonna take you to the top of that roof there, fuck you in your ass, stab you, mutilate you, make you eat dog shit, and throw you off that fucking roof." "And one more thing, and I guarantee." "The Fantastic Four Plus One are gonna be dead to the Grandmaster when he hear about this." "Forever." "We out." "d Dance, dance, dance, dance d d We're just dancin' to the beat Feel the heat d d I'm movin' my feet d" " Yo." " I'm working." "d Headed towards the floor Gonna get down d" "You found Napoleon?" "What the fuck are you still doing here?" "You got but one thing to do today." " Dump the car." " Hard at work, right?" " Jack the Mick Spic Fuck." " Clarence, ever heard of a fan?" "It's 80,000 degrees in here." "d Yowsah, yowsah, yowsah I wanna boogie with you d" " This ain't 8 grand." " It's 15." "Debts cleared." "I want two ounces, all right?" "None of that gutter glitter." "I want the sugar." " The pure Kriss Kringle studio fuel." " Try that." " All right." " Yeah, man." "Go to work." " Yo, how you come into all this cheddar?" " I got the... the next disco diva." " No shit." " I'm recording her first single tonight." "Jack the Mutt's doing disco." " What's this?" " It's called Critters from Mars." "Between you and me, I don't know nothing about writing no disco songs, man." "Personally, I don't like that music." "It's got no fucking feeling." "Hey, disco's all fucking feeling." "There's tragic passion sung by the unloved that fucking hypnotizes over chugging funk-style grooves that just..." "That's some trippy shit, you know?" "Hey, you know, I got an associate that dabbled in a little bit of songwriting." " Uh-huh." " A cat over there at High Voltage." "You know, the label I finance?" "Yeah." "I know High Voltage." "He got some of the big discos that'll lick right off your candy ass." "Yo, Clarence." "This is the big-time, all right?" " This is the real deal." " Come on, man." "I'm the motherfucking king of disco." "Oh, yeah?" "All right, yo." "Want me to check something out," " I'll check it out." " Check the shit out." "I'll look at it, man." "I'll look for you." "For you, all right?" "And I'll tell you what I think." "Check it out." "It's a party anthem in a 4/4 beat." "And it's called "Boogie Oogie Disco Biscuit"?" "I know he'd appreciate the feedback." "So, what you think?" "Well, you know what?" "It's a lot to take in." "It's a lot to digest." "d Dance, dance, dance d" "And Mom and Dad put me in charge." "Look at it in here!" "How are we gonna fix all this in time?" "Yo, their parents are gonna bug the fuck out for real." "Yeah." "Oh, shit." "That Shaolin." "You think he knows what happened with Flash?" "I don't know." "Just take it cool." " Yeah." " Shaolin Fantastic back." "Dang, homeboy." "That's some serious Shaft shit right here." "Who that hunk?" "Take me to church now." "This was formerly owned by a DJ named "Malibu."" "But she's ours now." "So, hop in, fellas." "Come on, y'all." "Hop in." "What you doing here?" "I was passing by." "Decided to stop in." "See if y'all wanted to hit the Jamaican joint." "Get some new records." "Spin the whip." " He's busy." " This your girl?" "Didn't think so." "That's the one at Les Inferno that night, right?" " Who are you?" " He's a friend, Mylene." " I told you about him." " I'm Shaolin Fantastic." "But you can call me Shao." "Well, nice to meet you, Shao, but me and Zeke gotta get going now." ""Mylene," right?" "Do you mind if I have a word with my wordsmith before y'all jet?" "Just talk about some business." "Music business." "Sure, but, you know, I got music business, too." " The wack part." " Excuse me?" " That's what you do." "You sing, right?" " Yeah." "That's what we call the wack part." "Wackness." "Bullshit." " Right, Books?" " "Books"?" "Yeah." "That's his street name 'cause he's smart as hell." "Hold up, hold up." "Mylene, give us a minute, all right?" "Yo, are we gonna tell Shao what happened with the Flash tape?" "Nah, let's play it cool." " What are you doing?" " Look, I'm sorry for my absence, man." "Whatever happened to "if you ever see me again, cross the street"?" "That fire had me shook up." "Brought back some, uh..." " some memories." "Some bad ones." " I could understand that." "It's all good, though." "I'm back at it now." "And I got some cash coming in." "Enough to get a new system." "Maybe even before the end of the day." "We'll be back in business before you know it." " Rocking the rhymes." "Clocking the beat." " Yo, Ezekiel!" "I gotta go." "I'm gonna be late." " What's with Malibu's car?" " All right, look." " Cadillac's paying me to dump it." " Fuck that motherfucker." "I know." "I know, I know." "But it's good money." "We dump it come nightfall, we get paid." "Meantime, we got a whip to joyride, records to buy and some dope-ass weed to smoke." "My treat." " Zeke." " Yo, what are we waiting for?" " Don't wanna come between..." " She's not my girl." " Look, I'm leaving." "Okay?" " No." " Stay here with your friends." " I'll go with you." "No, it's fine." "I'm fine on my own, okay?" " Wait." " What?" "Good luck." " Whatever." " Let's go, man." "Come on." "Let's take this baby for a ride." "Women, huh?" "Fuck them." "Let's boogie." "Ya'll gonna leave me here to clean all this up?" "Ra-Ra!" "Boo!" "d Action speaks louder than words d d Action speaks louder than words d" "Yo, she's gonna play you, man." " You're asking her to play you." " Nah." ""Nah," what?" " I know how to play the game." " See, that's your problem." "That's your problem." "Players always get played at the end." "Whereas Shaolin Fantastic he is the game." " You dig me?" "He is the game." " Yeah, I dig." "d Hey, hey, hey d d What you got to say d" "It was a perfect day" "Me and my man got Some real words to say" "We getting our minds right With some herbs" "Thinking the time's right To tell him about Flash" "But my nerves betray me" "You see, up in the Bronx That which is wrong can seem right" "And right seem wrong" "We're expecting record-temperature highs." "The city's never seen anything like this." "Perhaps the hottest day ever in New York." "Severe thunderstorm warnings, 50-mile-an-hour winds, and severe lightning." "Be advised." "So, this is a professional recording studio." "The guy back in the booth there, the fat guy, that's Furry Cooperstein, our engineer." "And the..." "You ready, you ready?" "You ready to do one?" "Yeah." " Okay." " Okay, we're, uh..." "Here's the tune." " "Oogie Boogie Disco Biscuit."" " It's a party anthem." "In a 4/4 beat, but with subtext." "I wrote it." "All the big discos, they're eating this shit up." "I won't let you down, Mr. Moreno." "All right." "We're ready to go." "You're gonna be great." "It's gonna be great." "I warned you last month, with all of the plans we have in play," "Hijos Boricuas has to run like a squeaky-clean operation." " Pero..." "Pero..." " Pero, pero deja con el fucking pero, ya." "Fix it, pero!" "Para fuera con eso." "You get rid of it, or I'm gonna get rid of you." "Lydia." "I'm sorry you had to even see all of that." "I'm not." "Only reminds me who you are." " I don't drink." " I know." "It's ginger ale." "Hey, come on." "It's hot out there tonight." "Here." "Tómatelo." "You changed your hair." "I don't know." "Something." " It looks nice." " My home is destroyed." "My daughter's gone." "The church is scandalized, her baby sister weeps." "My husband, your brother, speaks of taking his own life," " and I'm ready to join him." " Okay, okay." "Cógelo con take it easy." "Let's take it easy." "Have a seat." "Sit down." "d Boogie oogie oogie, Disco biscuit d d Spilled my drink Burned the brisket d d Boogie oogie oogie, Disco biscuit d d Touch my booty Step up and frisk it d" "Hold it, hold it, hold it." "Hold for a second." "Hold." "d Disco bis... d" "Mylene, dear, "hold" means stop singing." "Listen, um..." " Let's do another take, Furry." " Yeah, two questions, Jackie." "How high are you, and where's my fucking money?" "Whoa, excuse me?" "Mr. Moreno?" " Mr. Moreno?" " Yes, dear?" "This isn't working." " It's working great." " No, this isn't my type of song." "It..." "Because you're not singing it right." "It's..." "Furry, tell her." "The song fucking sucks, dude." "Mylene, do you know what a disco biscuit is?" "Like a cookie?" "No, it..." "No, it's a Quaalude." "It's a..." "It's a popular drug." "It makes the user feel mellow and horny." "Like, just..." "You know what "horny" means?" "You know...?" "You know what "horny" is?" "Um..." "Yeah." "But this song don't make me feel like that." " Well, how...?" "How does it make you feel?" " Makes me feel stupid." "Like, a comedy, but not funny." "You know, like..." "Like wack." "Like a joke." "Like "Disco Duck."" "Man, I can't wait to see the look on Larry's face when we roll in for that Clubman 1-1." "We gotta push this over here first." "Come on." " Go, go." " Come on." " Hold up." "Stop." " No." "He almost forgot the pinewood speakers." " What?" " Pop the trunk." "Yo, who was supposed to be checking that shit?" "You need that shit for the get-down." " Holy shit." " Oh, my God." " Motherfucker." " What the fuck?" "That's the little hard-rock motherfucker from the block." "Motherfucker." "Fucking Cadillac, man." "This is messed up." "Yo, Shao." "Why you put us in this shit?" " I didn't do nothing." " I don't know nothing about this." " That nigga dead." " Let's go." " Boo-Boo, Dizz, Zeke, let's go." " No." " No?" "What you mean "no"?" " No." "Just no." "No." "Ain't nobody going." " I'm gonna fuck you up." " Shao didn't know, right?" "Close that shit." "That body turns up anywhere but on the inside of that trunk..." "Cadillac gonna make sure we all gonna be the next ones stuffed in there." "The cops find it?" "Gonna lock us up regardless whether we did shit or not." "Make sure you got everything, that you didn't leave your bus pass with your name on it." "Let's go." "How can I help?" "Please..." "I beg of you... get out of our lives." " Lydia." " No." "You don't need us." "You cling to us because you have no one for yourself." "You're no spring chicken, Franny." "It's time for you to make your own family." "Stop with the girlfriends." "Find yourself a real woman." "I got a real woman." "I'm waiting on her." "Pero, she's stubborn." "But me, hey, I'm loyal." "Eso la verdad." "I need Mylene to come back home." "Bring my daughter home before there's no home left for her." "Whoa, I..." "I think you overestimate my powers." "Mylene, she's her own person, and all she wants to do is sing." "Because of you." "Yeah." "Mylene came to see you for all of this." "Her hair smelled como tu cigarros sucio." "And that awful dress." "That was you." "And the man in the church, the record producer..." "She wants to sing!" "And you..." "You're suffocating her." "She's my niece... and I love her." "And my brother, he's... he's crazy." "And you, you..." "You've become like a... a slave." "And between the two of you, you're... you're killing Mylene's soul." "You're killing her..." "Hey." "Suéltame." " Cálmate, cálmate." " Let go." " Lydia, please." " Let go." "Cálmate." "Cálmate." "She's right, Jackie." "The song, it's beneath you and her." "Oh, the song's beneath me?" " It's beneath me?" " Yeah." "Yeah." "The song is benea..." "It's beneath me, huh?" " It's beneath me." " Hey, man." " Would you take it easy?" " Take it easy." "Take it easy." "What do you mean?" "Know what I got?" "I owe fi..." "I owe five shylocks." "I owe wiseguys." "Street gangs." "I got whiplash in my head from..." "from spinning my head all day, thinking I'm gonna get whacked." ""Take it easy." How about some civility?" "What do I gotta do to be met with..." "with some civility?" "What do I gotta do, huh?" "What do I have to do to meet with some civility?" "Fucking pisses me off!" "So, how about that, huh?" "Civility!" "Civility!" " Civility!" " Jackie..." "Come on." "Come on!" "Push." "Come on!" "Go." "Let go." "Let go." "Fantastic Four Plus One is done." "We're starting over." "From now on, whatever goes down, we go down together." "That's how it gonna go down in the get-down." "That's how it gotta be." "If one man fall, we all fall." "Like how they say:" ""You gotta stand for something, or you'll fall for anything."" "We're brothers now." "We're the Get-Down Brothers." "We gotta get ours." "Do or die." "First chance we get..." "Cadillac's going down." "Know what that means?" "Know what civility means?" "This is what it means." "Civility, civil..." "All right, what happened?" "Where's the coke?" "Oh, shit." "Where'd Manhattan go?" "A major blackout has struck New York City." "Ian Wallace of ConEd is standing by." "Ian, this looks to be one of the worst power outages this city has ever seen." "Look, we're experiencing severe lightning storms." "That lightning took out power lines leading to the main generator, and the grid just couldn't handle it." "Where were you when the lights went out?" "When the lights went out, I was in the movies, and it suddenly blacked out." "At 9:34 pm, a complete power shutdown occurred." "Any idea when the power will be restored?" "Just how long it will take to restore power, we simply cannot determine at this time." "We go to the streets for more on this." "It is 'cause I messed up the song?" "Why you went all crazy like a maniac?" "No." "Not at all." "Okay, but... you do think I'm talented, right, Mr. Moreno?" "You're very talented." "Yeah, but do you think I'm talented enough to be a star, like, for real?" "How about you tell me." "Do you think you're talented?" " Mm..." "I don't know." " "I don't know" is for amateurs." " You either know or you don't." " Okay, but what's your opinion?" "That's my opinion." "What's your professional opinion?" " My professional opinion?" "Well..." " Yeah." "Oh, Mylene..." "It's time you know what everybody below 59th Street knows, which is this:" "Nobody gives a fuck about my professional opinion, you know?" "And even if they did, in order for me to have a professional opinion," "I'd have to have a fucking profession, which I don't." "But you're Jackie Moreno... right?" "I was." "I was." "Not anymore." "I don't work for Marrakesh Star." "I haven't had a hit in years, you know?" "I'm fucking... dead in this business, Mylene, okay?" "You know, I'm like a fugazi at this point, which means I'm a fucking fake." " That's who I am." " I'm sorry for your problems." "I am." "And I'm not gonna tell my uncle about none of this." "I appreciate that." "But will you then please help me find a real record producer and songwriter." " You know, someone amazing, someone great." " Someone great?" "I..." " I never said I wasn't great." " I didn't mean it like that." "Let me tell you something." "A few years ago, not too long ago, I was driving a Rolls-Royce." "I had a Porsche." "You heard of the Grammys?" " Yeah." " I..." "I got three of those." "Now I don't got nothing." " You got me, right?" " You..." "I got you." "I got..." "You don't even know if you're talented or not." "Look, Mr. Moreno," "I don't care if I'm talented." "I just wanna sing," " and I wanna get out of the Bronx." " Mylene, this business isn't here to hold your hand." "Listen to me." "What we do here, it's fucking essential." "It's like oxygen." "When a..." "When a true artist sings, they don't hold back nothing." "And it's..." "When you sing like that, it..." "raises the dead." "The world's dying of a thousand heart attacks." "We... heal them up three minutes at a time." "That's..." "It's a goddamn public service what we do." "That's the only reason to make music." "And if you..." "You can't make music like that with doubts." "It won't work." "You gotta know." "I know." "All right, then you know." "All right." "So, fine." "I'll ask around." "I'll help you get another producer." "No, I don't want another producer." "I want you." "I worked on this song with Vinnie DiMirco." "I know this one." "Keep playing it, and you tell me what I know and what I don't." "d Come with me d d And we shall run Across the sky d" "d And illuminate the night d d Oh, I d" "d I will try and guide you d d To better times d" "I should get back to Ramon and the church now." "No, it's..." "It's too dangerous out there." "Sí." "Still..." "I should go." " I'll take you there." " No." "I'll find my way." "I'll take the flashlight, okay?" "Lydia." "You say I don't love my brother." "I..." "I've sacrificed my life for him." "I've sacrificed... the only things that are dear to me." "You know that." "Don't make me lose my Mylene." "Please." "You see me as a bad man." "Hm." "Maybe I am." "But where it counts most..." "I've been a man of my word." "Haven't I?" "Lydia, haven't I?" "You have, Franny." "You have." "The girls in the club..." "I like to have a nice girl on my arm." "I like to have a dance every now and then." "That's true." "But I sleep alone, Lydia." "Every night... since 1960." "Make no mistake." "I know." "That is for Ramon." "He..." "He won't accept it from me." "Maybe you can slide it into the collection basket... a little bit at a time." "Okay?" "Thank you." "I will make sure you never lose your daughter." "I will make sure my brother is looked after... and that his familia stays intact." "I promise you that." "And I will close my eyes when my heart is crying." "It's been less than an hour since the lights have gone out." " Fires have broken out all over..." " We're going to Les Inferno." " Take what's ours." " I understand that." "All right?" "We all shook." "This is crazy, but, Zeke, come on." "I'm not sure retaliation is our style, man." "Why, Ra, because we special?" "Because we above all this?" "How are we above all this?" "It ain't retaliation anyways, it's a chance." "We miss our chance, the world's gonna play us for fools." "d Come up the ladder To the roof d d Where we can be d d Where we can be d" "d Where we can be d d Closer to heaven d" "d Closer to heaven d d Closer to heaven d" "Mylene Cruz, you're the real deal." "Don't let anybody ever tell you different." "Thanks." " So, a song like that..." " Mm-hm." " ...except with the four..." " 4/4 beat." "The 4/4 beat." " Let's do that." " You know what, Mylene?" "I'm gonna write you a song." "It's gonna be a masterpiece." "You for real?" "Everybody I ever knew I fucked over." "People change." "I believe that." "Let's take it from the top." "Okay let's..." "Let's take it up a notch." "Okay." "d Come with me d" "d And we shall run Across the sky d d Illuminate the night d" "d Oh, I d d I will try and guide you d" "d To better times d d And brighter days d" " Shh!" " d Don't be afraid d" "Ho-ho!" "d Climb up the ladder To the roof d" "Ra-Ra, come on." "d Where we can see... d" "d Where we can be d d Closer to heaven d" " Put that stuff..." " Grab a turntable." " All right, got it." " Let's go." "Let's go." "d We shall let expression sing d d Let it sing d" "d Can't you hear them ring?" "d d Oh d d Memories d" "d Of yesterday d d Yesterday's broken dream Don't you know?" "d d They'll all fade away d" "Hey." "Gracia." "d Come up the ladder To the roof d d Where we can be d" "d Where we can be d d Closer to heaven d" "d We'll laugh  And I'll tell you the story of love d d And how it is And the happiness in it, baby... d d Clear as day, dark as night d d Dark or light Bereft, contrite d" "d Butterscotch Queen Broke heart's delight d d So far away I've lost my sight d d A candle flickers Life, this river d d Fuck, I'll miss her I can never hope to hide it d" "d I ain't Sir Lancelot I can never be knighted d d I'm straight blinded Bronx born blighted d d Switchblade fighted Double-sided, heart divided d d Grinded, cursed Forever misguided d d This wrong d d Cannot be righted d" " Hey." " Hey." " You okay?" " Uh-huh." "You don't look okay." "Yeah." "Well, it's dark." "So, what did y'all do tonight?" "Nothing." "Chilled." "Why won't you look at me?" "Look at you for what?" "Look at me." "Zeke, I know you, and you've got those mad eyes on to hide your sad eyes." "I'm not sad or mad." "Fine." "Fine." "Aren't you gonna ask me how it went at the studio?" "How'd it go?" "Amazing." "You sang good?" "Zeke, I sang better than I ever sang." "We didn't get to record, but Jackie's gonna write me a for-real song." "Cool." "I tell you my secrets all the time, and you always listen." "It's my turn to listen now." "Listen to what?" "Zeke, come on." "Something bad happened tonight." "But you're okay?" "Yeah." "No." "I mean, I..." "Come with me." "d Don't you wanna come d" "I told him to close the trunk." "And it's like that car..." "just sank into darkness." "Like a deep, dark hole." "Shao, he showed me this music thing." "Yo, that's like the first time I felt fully alive." "And with the world burning to hell... that meant a lot." "d Up the ladder d d To the roof d" "d Where we can be d" "A city rages in an unforgiving darkness." "A night of horror." "Thirty-six hours of darkness." "One hundred and fifty-five million dollars lost in business... over 3000 arrests, 132 injured police officers, a thousand fires recorded." "For New York City, nothing will ever quite be the same again." "d Closer to heaven d" "d Closer to heaven d" "Every night... since 1960." "Make no mistake." "I know." "That is for Ramon." "He..." "He won't accept it from me." "Maybe you can slide it into the collection basket... a little bit at a time." "Okay?" "Thank you." "I will make sure you never lose your daughter." "I will make sure my brother is looked after... and that his familia stays intact." "I promise you that." "And I will close my eyes when my heart is crying." "It's been less than an hour since the lights have gone out." " Fires have broken out all over..." " We're going to Les Inferno."