We take viewers to Louisville, Kentucky for the first Afro centric view of the legendary Kentucky Derby, of the premier sporting and social events in the world. The Derby, the first leg of the prestigious Triple Crown championship horse races, is a statewide scene party rivaled only by Mardi Gras and the National Football League Super Bowl. The parties of the rich and famous have made mint juleps, $100,000 bets and expensive hats a major staple of the event that has been well-chronicled by the mainstream media.

Louisville, affectionately known for Derby fast horses, fast women and fine bourbon, has become the scene in recent years of a Hip-Hop festival that is matched in popularity only by Bikers Week in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Freaknik in Atlanta, and Daytona Beach, Florida. Yet, to date, few producers have delved into the urban culture that has helped the Derby to evolve into a major Afro centric happening with a national following whose cultural diversity is unmatched. The Derby subculture includes everything from African American black tie galas, stylish women, fabulous cars, street-wise hustlers, star-studded concerts, a showcase parade and jazz in historic black clubs that still resemble their segregated past.

Using Louisville as a backdrop for beautiful women, good music, great basketball and flashy cars are as much a part of the subculture in the African-American community as thoroughbred race horses; we give viewers an eye-popping view of one of the great social extravaganzas in the nation. This is an event that local businesses plan (and make enough money) for an entire year. In Louisville, everyone figures out a way to make money from the Derby, including private citizens who often rent their homes to unknown out-of-town visitors. The Derby which is held during the first Saturday in May, and attracts upwards to 500,000 race fans to historic Churchill Downs for the first leg of the Triple Crown. We are not focused on the race itself, but rather on the events that surround the race in the African-American Hip-Hop culture.

We focus on the hidden ambience and sheer beauty of the event from the eyes of the African-American community. We take you on the hoods of cars with street hustlers, who guide out of town guests to parking spaces near the track (for a fee, of course), in the South end of Louisville. We talk to Tom Hammond, one of the acentric voices of the Derby, who describes its rich history in the African-American community and little known facts about black jockeys, who dominated horse racing, including the Derby, in the 19th Century and early 20th Century. In fact, we highlight the black jockey, who rode the winner in the first Kentucky Derby. We take you to Joe's Palm Room, one of the nation's top venues for backroom Jazz and a regular stop for Derby visitors. Then there is Shirley's East End Café', another backstreet favorite, for food and the site of a makeshift African-American Black Jockey Museum. We highlight some of the traditional black gala’s that have become an annual happening.

We will also visit and follow the Screaming Eagles (African-American) motorcycle club as they make their rounds. We watch Broadway, a major through fare in the city, Shawnee and Chickasaw Park, turn into parade routes where out-of-town visitors and hustlers showcase their antique cars that vibrate and shake moving slowly down the street with music blaring and people standing and riding on the hoods of cars. Then there are the scantily clad of women who converge on the same scene with street-wise friends. The idea for those who participate is to make an outlandish scene while being seen during what is affectionately known as the "Broadway Street Party." We also go to a nearby cemetery, which is transformed into a makeshift venue for music, barbecues and parties while people enjoy Derby festivities from afar.

From there, we will go to former NBA star and local legend Darrell Griffith's Derby Party, which usually attracts a wide range of social butterflies, popular sporting, political and entertainment figures. We go to the South end Neighborhood Parking Lots around the Derby and annual social clubs for the festivities and activities. We take the time to talk to Louisville legends like Muhammad Ali and former NFL star Chris Dishman, whose uncle was a longtime trainer in Lexington, Kentucky. We also move to nearby Lexington for the spin-off events and parties along with interviews former black jockeys and trainers who work at the nearby horse farms. Former NBA and University of Kentucky players Sam Bowie and Kenny Walker, who now are involved in the horse business, are also targets for interviews.

We visit the Governor's Big Derby Breakfast, Shirley Cunningham’s Derby bash and we capture the religious ambiance of the event with a peek into a local church which has centered worship services around Derby activities. We will film the historic Kentucky Festival Race and move to the organized venues for major performances from some of the nation's leading Hip Hop artists, entertainers and comics. We also talk to the ones who just come to town to hang out. Interviews are scheduled with comedian Mike Epps, Levell Crawford, and actress Lisa Raye, Nappy Roots, Midnight Star, and current NBA-NFL Louisvians Derrick Anderson, Allen Houston, Dieon Branch.

The show will be non-stop action and it will mix comedy, history and of course famous faces in an effort to maximize its appeal.

We will break down the Stone Soul Derby into three major parts during production:

• Activities/Special Events. This is where we actually take the viewers on a tour of events as if they were a member of the Hip-Hop community. Our viewers will get a backdoor pass to one of the hottest events in the nation.

• Major Stars. We will interview many of the nation's top celebrities as they move around during the Derby. We catch them at the big parties and we talk to them about their careers and what makes this event so special to them. We also find out if they can pick a winner at the race track.

• History. We educate our viewers as to the rich and often forgotten contributions of many African-American jockeys and individuals like.

William E. Summers, III, who was the first African-American chairman of the Derby festival and legendary radio owner. We also give them a glimpse of our segregated past when we take them inside clubs like Joe’s Palm Room where many great artists performed.

We plan to begin production during Derby Week (Tuesday) for the carnest start of shooting for Stone Soul Derby.

Ultimately, we want to focus on one 60-90 minute special that can focus on the rich history, tradition of the African-American community that has often been hidden as it relates to the Louisville Derby. As a complement to that in an effort to capture the 12-34 audience, we also highlight the growing popularity of the event for the African-American community which has turned to tradition-laden event into a major happening on the national scene. A social benefit will be our ability to educate the public about some hidden facts about the Derby that American history has overlooked.

• DVD Home Video Distribution

• Cable Network Special (HBO, ShowTime, BET etc.)