BC056 - Documentary review: ‘All Up in the Biz’

The life and times of rapper, DJ, and centrifugal hip-hop figure Biz Markie

All Up in the Biz (Showtime, aired August 11; on Hulu), dir. Sacha Jenkins

I admit, I went into this documentary about the centrifugal hip-hop figure Biz Markie—the pick of my friend, colleague, and upstairs neighbor Nate Patrin (we take turns every week) on Christmas Day (I made turkey chili, Nate hosted)—hoping but not expecting it to touch on Biz’s DJ career. But of course, it would have to, logically—he did it for a long time, and he did it visibly: “Biz was the DJ for the entertainers, basically,” Rakim recalls as footage of Markie rocking the turntables for Sean Combs, Beyoncé, Sisqo, and other chart-riders having their day. Biz played industry functions galore, but he was also a popular club headliner. One talking head recalls that his playing style received the side-eye from more technique-obsessive types; but then, what about Biz Markie’s career hadn’t? His big-kid personality, abundant wit, genuine good cheer, and a no-BS determination to overcome everything in his path steamrollered cavils that his blends were sloppy like he steamrollered everything else.