*The Lifetime biopic “Surviving Compton” was ratings gold for the network, raking in millions of viewers for the Saturday premiere. Last year’s blockbuster biopic “Straight Outta Compton” chronicled the rise of gangsta rap pioneers NWA and failed to show how Michel’le’s radio-friendly tracks helped to launch the group’s Ruthless Records to the next level.
The Lifetime biopic on the singer not only depicted her rise to fame on the backs of the rap icons, but also highlighted the abuse she endured by the hands of music producer Dr. Dre. “Straight Outta Compton” failed to portray Dre’s repeated violence against women – violence that Michel’le, Dre’s former long-term girlfriend and mother of his son Marcel, exposes in the small screen story about her life.
READ RELATED STORY: Michel’le Has More Bad News for Dr. Dre Post Biopic: A Tell-All Book
via Deadline:
The network’s Saturday’s premiere of the one-hour documentary “Beyond The Headlines: Michel’le” averaged 1.9 million total viewers, retaining 83% of its “Surviving Compton” lead-in. All in, Lifetime boasts, the network reached 9.4 million viewers across all weekend telecasts of the two projects, which touch on the life of hip-hop recording artist Michel’le.
Before the film premiered, Michel’le spoke with JET about her motivation for producing “Surviving Compton.” Simply put, the decision to tell her life story was because she was left out of “Straight Out of Compton.”
“When Dr. Dre told his story in Straight Outta Compton, I think by him not including me, my absence was noticed and people started their own campaign about ‘why wasn’t she in the film?’ So it kind of manifested itself. I was approached with the opportunity and I took it. Really what the movie is about and why I think it was good to tell is, I could have given you guys a movie about a good girl, sugarcoated it and said that’s my story. I chose to tell you guys what I really went through because I thought it was a better message in that. Abuse is not love. I’m shocked that more women are saying “why now” than men. Like, why not?! Are we going to bury this like we bury AIDS, cancer and molestation? We need to stop bury things and talk about it because if I had heard this story when I was 15, I would have said ‘oh no, I’m going to be more cautious of that.’ But everybody wants to be the hero in their story, so it’s hard.”
Peep the clip below to see what else Michel’le has in the works:
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