Look at Me: XXXTTentacion is a new documentary about the controversial rapper who died in 2018. XXXTentacion, known to his parents as Jahseh Onfroy, was a teenage superstar that made his own fame by producing his own music on Soundcloud. He also notably suffered from severe mental illness. He was diagnosed when he was a boy and again when he was a celebrity as having Bipolar disorder. He was also known as a prodigious misogynist of his time, most memorably when he was arrested for imprisoning and assaulting his pregnant girlfriend, Geneva Ayala. With that being one of the most present moments of his legacy, you might wonder why this documentary is being made.

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With X’s character crafted around the fact that he was a villain, his music may have been more of an admission of guilt than a ploy to seduce the masses. Though, putting your feelings out there does not absolve you of their consequences and especially doesn’t give you a leg to stand on when you refuse to change. But many of his fans related to those deep depressive, conflicted feelings, and his fame was founded on them. And perhaps it’s because of his misogynist, criminally insane behavior that it’s important this movie be directed by a Black woman, Sabaah Folayan. She attempts to run the project with empathy and see beyond the criminality of X’s actions.

XXXTentacion’s Career & Troubles

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Sabaah Folayan makes it a point of acknowledging X’s past as a victim and an abuser early on, adding resources to the film for those who might be thinking of harming themselves (Safe Alternatives Hotline: 1-800-366-8288) or those who are survivors of domestic abuse (National Domestic Violence Hotline: 1-800-799-7233). The film even responsibly urges viewers who are thinking of doing so to pause the movie and take advantage of these resources.

XXXTentacion launched his rap career while still in prison. Solomon Sobande discovered him while his music was getting a lot of views on Soundcloud. He listened to X’s song “Look at Me” and began doing research. Eventually, he was able to fly down to Florida and get X to sign his contract while he was still in prison, offering to get his new artist out on bail once he started with Sobande’s label. Once he had a fire lit under him, and his career began to take off, X got out on bail and published his biggest single, “Sad.” That secured his fame and led him to the realms of celebrity most remember the artist living in. The documentary also highlights X’s business savvy for trading labels to Ghazi Shami’s Empire.

The documentary goes up to the point of X’s tour, which passed through SXSW months before his death in 2018. Then the tone shifts after the artist changes his hair from its bleached/black color to blue. According to Variety, the film ends in a mood composed of some of X’s posts owning up to his mental illness and attempting to reconcile with his past. The upswing in taking responsibility gives the film a redemptive quality that some who oppose XXXTentacion might find unjustified.

“But in the end, you don’t have to buy Onfroy’s redemption, or even the nearness of one, to be affected by the last act. Folayan makes the ending about the ability of women — the artist’s mom and ex-girlfriends in particular here — to pull things together in the wake of a mess that men have left.” reads the Variety review. This is a positive place to end the film considering its subject’s life. Perhaps the documentary will provide an impartial view of a celebrity whom many are willing to judge quickly and not add to the divisive atmosphere surrounding the artist’s life.

The Cast & Crew

The documentary is largely made up of archival footage from X’s life and interviews with people that knew him. According to The Film Stage, the film “smartly never takes the middle ground, but rather provides a kaleidoscopic portrait informed by those that knew him well — family, business partners, mentors, contemporaries.” It is composed impartially to provide all sides of the argument about this controversial character. X’s estate also authorized the documentary, which should tell you that this is not a piece explicitly designed to smear the late rapper.

X’s mother, Cleopatra Bernard, appears in the film. She may have approved of the documentary in order to save her son’s reputation. Others who will show up include Craig Xen, who collaborated with XXXTentacion early in their careers while they were on the Members Only label; Kid Trunks, who was also on those albums; Ski Mask the Slump God; and Juice WRLD. The film also interviews John Cunningham and Solomon Sobande, XXXTentacion’s producer and the man who discovered him. X’s girlfriends also show up in this music documentary either through archival footage or interviews. Jenesis Sanchez, Cinthia Perez, and Geneva Ayala all appear.

Release Date

Look At Me: XXXTentacion will be available on Hulu starting May 26, 2022.