After last year’s Tribeca Film Festival kicked things off on a strong note with The National documentary Mistaken For Stranger, the New York City-based event will get musical once again. They’ve unveiled their 2014 festival will begin on April 16th with the world premiere of Time is Illmatic, which tracks the journey of Nas around the release of his now-classic album Illmatic.

Directed by One9, we’ve now got the first, brief clip from the film, which follows Nas into the studio as he gears up to lay down a track. It’s certainly not much, but it’s a fun tease, and one can return for our thoughts on the film during the festival. Following its premiere, the rapper will also be performing a live concert featuring every song from the classic album, which is getting a 20th anniversary re-release the same month. Check out the clip below, along with an official synopsis.

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Directed by multimedia artist One9, written by Erik Parker, and produced by One9, Parker, and Anthony Saleh, Time Is Illmatic traces Nas’s influences (including the music of his jazz musician father, Olu Dara) and describes the almost insurmountable obstacles he faced in creating his hip-hop opus. Supported by The Ford Foundation’s Just Films and Tribeca Film Institute’s Tribeca All Access program, the documentary provides an authentic and passionate account of Nas’s personal journey from a young street poet to a visionary MC, a transformation made possible in large part by the support of his family and community.

Are you looking forward to the doc?

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