Battle of the Year

That's last year's Battle of the Year.

It's an international b-boy competition held in France,

which for the last 15 years

the United States has lost.

I went to a concert this past weekend,

and I overheard some high school kids

saying that b-boying was no longer cool

and it was something their parents did.

That scared me.

It scared me because this company,

everything I've built,

started off with b-boying.

It's obviously still cool over in France.

The government subsidizes Battle of the Year.

The government is keeping hip-hop alive.

Still cool in Russia,

Germany,

Korea.

But it's not cool here where it was founded.

Which would explain why,

domestically, our sales are down.

Merchandising, record sales, ticket sales, apparel.

But for the first time in this company's history,

international sales are exceeding domestic.

We are in trouble.

Think about it, if b-boying ain't cool,

how long before hip-hop isn't cool?

And what will that mean to our business, our company?

Hey, yo!

Wake up! Hold on!

Get your ass up.

Come on, man. You can sleep when you're dead.

Coming.

Dante?

See your maid doesn't do windows, does she?

What the hell are you doing here, man?

I've been calling, you ain't been answering.

I've been busy lately.

All right, well, bring your busy ass over and open up this door.

This ain't no prison visit.

You look like shit.

Look, if you came here to sweat me, D...

Came here to make you a proposition.

You gonna let me in or what?

Okay-

This... This old thing work?

All right. Here we go.

Check this out.

That's Japan versus Korea, world champions.

I mean, b-boying ain't the same

from back in the days when we were dancing, man.

I mean, what's the farthest we ever had to go to battle,

the Bronx?

Now these kids are battling in Japan, Germany, France.

So, the Battle of the Year is coming up, right?

And I'm sponsoring the US crew.

So my crew is called LA's Finest. Now, these kids are good.

Acrobatic, they got skills, but they're not great.

Yet.

Only missing one thing.

You.

I want you to coach the crew.

Coach?

Now, I know you need money, so...

Here you go, check that out,

let me know if that meets your approval.

But the freestyle sessions are next month,

and I need you to prepare my crew for battle.

I was a basketball coach. It doesn't matter.

A coach is a coach, and you were the best I've ever seen, man.

It's in your heart. I ain't that guy anymore.

Just come with me, let's go check out the boys,

and if you think they suck, you walk away.

No pressure. So what are you waiting on?

You don't want me, D. I mean, seriously,

how many opportunities do you have

come knocking at your window every day, WB?

Can't even keep my own shit straight.

Look, I'm not gonna stand here

and pretend like I know what you're going through,

'cause I don't.

But, come on, man, that fire in your heart,

that need to win and the ability

to infect those around you and get them to believe the same thing?

Man, you still got that shit. Guys like you don't lose it.

Look, man, this right here, this ain't you.

You had trajectory.

And I'll be frank with you, man,

you and I both know she's never coming back.

You know what, man?

We're done here. I was wrong.

This was a prison visit.

And this is your cell, man.

The only difference has been between my life and yours,

is that I made a life out of opening doors

and you made one out of closing them.

Dig One Entertainment. Please hold.

Dig One Entertainment. How may I help you?

WB!

Welcome to Dig One, baby.

What's up, D?

It's impressive. So talk to me.

Tell me something good, man. You in?

Not yet.

I need to do some homework, see if I can even pull this off, all right?

Follow me.

That's it.

About 100 hours of footage, goes back four or five years.

Need anything else?

A hundred hours, huh?

Maybe a pot of coffee, couple sandwiches.

So that is just coffee in there, right?

Yeah. Just coffee.

Good.

Keep the good shit right here.

Come on, D.

Can't plug the cork overnight.

Doesn't work that way. I'll be in my office.

Okay, got you a fresh pot.

Did you want me to order you any dinner before I punch out?

No, I'm all good, thank you. Yeah.

Yo, look at those elbow spins.

That shit is nasty.

Koreans came strong that year.

Those K-boys are like superheroes.

You b-boy? Nah, I wish.

My people are not exactly chosen when it comes to breaking.

What do you mean, your people? Jews.

We're rhythmically challenged.

We're stripped of our swag at the circumcision.

I've made my peace with it. Anyway, I'm a fan.

Be dope to see the US crew take the BOTYs.

What the hell is a BOTY? Seriously?

Have a seat. What's your name?

Franklyn, with a

Blake.

So, Franklyn with a fill me in.

The BOTYs stands for Battle of the Year.

It's the world cup of b-boying.

It's the premier event, the big daddy of them all.

It started in Germany in the '90s,

but now it takes place in France.

Why France?

'Cause the only thing the French revere more than carbs is dance.

Anyway, 20 countries bring their top crew to battle for the world championship.

And a nice Jewish kid like you knows all this because?

They don't teach you how to pick up chicks at Hebrew school,

and breaking made me cool.

I mean, I might be Jewish, but my religion is hip-hop.

You've seen Planet B-Boy, yeah?

Afraid not.

Can I ask you something?

Sure.

Why is Dante having you coach his crew?

That's a good question.

Planet B-Boy, it's like our bible.

It's this dope documentary about what b-boying is now.

Can I see that?

What, this? Yeah.

What is this thing?

It's the new Sony tablet.

It's the future.

Planet B-Boy, it's got a billion rentals on Netflix.

Hold on.

Check it out.

Come on, wake up! Wake up!

No time to sleep! Work to do!

What time is it? 9:00.

You been holed up in here all night?

Hundred hours of footage, right?

Guess you did your homework, huh?

Enough, anyway.

When did all this shit happen?

Feeling old yet?

Little bit.

The moves these guys are pulling off are phenomenal.

The Koreans are on fire.

And we need some of that fire for our crew.

So what's up, man? We got a deal or what?

Two conditions. Name them.

First, I want Franklyn here as my assistant coach.

For real? This guy?

Yeah.

All right, done. Second one?

This right here.

Made a little addendum to your contract.

If this is about money, I'll take care of it.

It's just one line, D. Just read it.

"If I do this..."

I can't make this out, man. It's chicken scratch.

What does that say? "If I do this,

"I got to do it on my own terms."

Little place for your initials right there.

Okay-

You are a tough negotiator, my man.

All right, let's go see the crew in about an hour.

Hey, Jan, how you doing?

I'm doing busy.

Can I see D? It won't even take a minute.

And I would do that for you because?