Afro-Punk: The Rock is a 66-minute documentary film directed by James Spooner, exploring race identity within the punk scene across America and abroad. The film focuses on the lives of four people dedicated to the punk rock lifestyle, interspersed with interviews from scores of black punk rockers from all over the United States. The interviews cover issues of loneliness, exile, interracial dating, black power, and the dual lives led by people of color in communities that are primarily white.
Afro-Punk features performances by Bad Brains, Tamar-kali, Cipher, and Ten Grand. It also contains exclusive interviews by members of Fishbone, 24-7 Spyz, Dead Kennedys, Candiria, Orange 9mm, The Veldt and TV on the Radio, among others. In 2003 the documentary was featured at the American Black Film Festival in South Beach and the Pan African Film & Arts Festival, and won an Official Selection at the Toronto International Film Festival, an Audience Award at the Black Harvest International Film and Video Festival in Chicago, an award for Excellence in Documentary Filmmaking at the Roxbury Film Festival in Boston, and an award for Best Documentary at the International Jamerican Film and Music Festival in Jamaica.
Spooner, and many others active in the Afro-punk community, host regular concerts in the New York City area and elsewhere that feature Afro-punk identified bands. At these shows, the majority of the audience is usually made up of African American musicians, singers, songwriters, fans, activists, organizers, and artists who have distinct and diverse ties to the Afro-punk community.
Matt Davis, guitarist and vocalist of Ten Grand, died on August 10, 2003, shortly after his appearance in Afro-Punk.
