Lifetime is getting into the hip-hop game. Following the success of Fox's Empire, the female-skewing
cable network is teaming with Queen Latifah and Jermaine Dupri for a new unscripted series called
The Rap Game. The eight-episode series, set to premiere on New Year's Day, follows five emerging
artists ages 12-16 who will be immersed in the Atlanta hip-hop scene in a quest to become the next
big rap star.
Producer Dupri will be joined every week by such guests as Usher, Ludacris, Da Brat, T.I. and Silento
to help mold the kids into the next big young rapper and earn a record contract with their mentor's So So
Def Recordings label. During his more than 30-year career, Dupri has worked with young talents including
Bow Wow, Da Brat, Kris Kross and TLC. Dupri will exec-produce alongside Latifah and her Flavor Unit
partner Shakim Compere. The Rap Game is additionally produced by Intuitive Entertainment, Mechelle
Collins and Kevin Dill (The Millionaire Matchmaker), showrunner Sean Rankine (Basketball Wives),
Laura Fuest Silva (America's Next Top Model) and Chris Deaux (Rods and Wheels). Lifetime’s Eli Lehrer,
Mary Donahue and Mariana Flynn oversee in for Lifetime. Filmed in Atlanta, the series will air Fridays at
10 p.m.
For Lifetime, The Rap Game comes as both broadcast and cable networks alike are looking to tap into
the success of Fox's hip-hop soap Empire.
Source: Variety