On September 18, 2004, Dave Chappelle threw a block party on the corner of Quincy and Downing streets in Brooklyn, New York. In what became something not unlike a send-off to Chappelle’s Show—which ended just months after Block Party premiered—Dave gathered the musicians he most admired, his friends and frequent collaborators from his acclaimed comedy show and Def Poetry Jam.

Featuring performances by Kanye West, Black Star’s Mos Def (Yasiin Bey) and Talib Kweli, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Questlove, Black Thought and The Roots crew, Common, Big Daddy Kane, Dead Prez, John Legend, and—a miracle—The Fugees, Dave Chappelle’s Block Party is a love letter to East Coast hip hop. The Michel film also features the exact moment Kanye West morphed from “College Dropout” to the Yeezus that we know and love today.

MUSICALE – (noun) a program of music performed at a party – is a monthly film series at The Royal.