Michael Rapaport will be hitting the road this summer with his documentary on hip-hop legends A Tribe Called Quest, "Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest." The roll out across the country starts July 8 in New York City and Los Angeles.  

"I'll be all over the place ­ wherever they want to send me," says Rapaport, a first-time director with more than 20 years of acting credits, among them "True Romance," "Mighty Aphrodite" and the TV series "Prison Break."   

The film, a Sony Pictures Classics release, will play another 32 cities as it is released to a handful of theaters at a time. "Beats, Rhymes & Life" will play San Francisco, Chicago and Washington, D.C., on its second week, San Diego, Boston, Philadelphia, Minneapolis and Atlanta beginning July 22.   

The current run ends Aug. 12 when it premieres in 10 cities, among them New Orleans, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh. The film will be screened Wednesday (Apr. 27) at the Tribeca Film Festival.   

A fan of A Tribe Called Quest since its first recordings in 1989, Rapaport decided the band was worthy of a documentary while he was watching it perform in 1998 at New York's Tramps nightclub. In 2006, while attending a reunion show at L.A.'s Wiltern Theatre, he decided he was the one to do it, financing it with his own credit cards.   

"There was no time to wait," he said. "As an actor I have been a part of so many movies that seem like they are about to fall apart. The indie filmmakers who inspire me are the ones who go and do it, no matter what that means. Fortunately since then I have received (some financing)."   

Using performances and interviews from the 2008 Rock the Bells festivals that they headlined, the four members of A Tribe Called Quest trace their history from the borough of Queens to the formation of the group in 1988 and the release of five albums between 1990 and 1998. Considered the most artistically ambitious rap group of the 1990s, "Beats, Rhymes & Life" is also the title of Tribe's only No. 1 album on the Billboard Top 200.   

Since the film's debut at the Sundance Film Festival three months ago, Tribe leader Q-Tip has sent out mixed messages about the film, saying he had problems with it and that ATCQ fans should go see it.   

Q-Tip Explains Gripe with A Tribe Called Quest Doc

"The differences Tip had, I think, came down to the fact that he's an artist and a perfectionist who is always in control," Rapaport says, calling ATCQ the "Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin of first generation hip-hop."  "He was the leader of Tribe. But I'm making the movie and I have to make the final decisions. He's accustomed to making all of the decisions. I have thought about it a lot and if somebody made a movie as interpersonal as this about me, I don't know that I'd be pleased with someone else making the decisions. To me, it's a love letter to the band."   

Here is the theatrical release schedule for "Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels of A Tribe Called Quest":

7/8  

NEW YORK  

Sunshine  

Empire  

Magic Johnson  

LOS ANGELES  

Arclight Hollywood  

Century City 15  

Criterion Santa Monica  

7/15  

SAN FRANCISCO  

Metreon  

Kabuki  

CHICAGO  

Century Centre  

River East  

CineArts Evanston  

WASHINGTON, DC  

E-Street  

Georgetown  

Bethesda Row  

Shirlington  

Magic Johnson  

7/22  

SAN DIEGO  

Hillcrest  

BOSTON  

Kendall Square  

Boston Commons  

Embassy Waltham  

PHILADELPHIA  

Ritz 5  

Ritz Center Voorhees  

MINNEAPOLIS  

Uptown  

ATLANTA  

Midtown  

Phipps Plaza  

SAN FRANCISCO - ADD ONS  

Shattuck  

Century Mountain View  

Marin Sausalito  

CineArts Santana Row San Jose  

7/29  

DALLAS  

Angelika  

Angelika Plano

HOUSTON  

Edwards Greenway  

AUSTIN  

Violet Crown  

Arbor  

SEATTLE  

Pacific Place  

Metro  

Lincoln Square Bellevue  

PORTLAND  

Cinema 21  

MILWAUKEE  

Oriental  

DETROIT  

Uptown Birmingham  

8/5  

PHOENIX  

Tempe Marketplace  

MADISON  

Sundancen Cinemas  

MIAMI  

Regal South Beach  

ST. LOUIS  

Tivoli  

CLEVELAND  

Cedar Lee  

CINCINNATI  

Esquire

HONOLULU  

Kahala  

8/12  

SAN ANTONIO  

Bijou  

AMC Huebner  

COLUMBUS  

Gateway  

AMC Lennox  

DAYTON  

Neon Movies  

KANSAS CITY  

Palace  

AMC Studio Olathe  

SALT LAKE CITY  

Broadway  

INDIANAPOLIS  

Keystone Art  

PITTSBURGH  

Regent  

NEW ORLEANS  

Canal Place  

Elmwood  

CHARLOTTE  

Manor  

RALEIGH-CHAPEL HILL  

Colony Raleigh  

Chelsea Chapel Hill