Oscar-winning writer John Ridley — who has penned such acclaimed films as 12 Years a Slave, Three Kings, U-Turn and the cult classic Undercover Brother — has now revived rock-n-roll’s greatest guitar icon, Jimi Hendrix, in the upcomig directorial effort, Jimi: All Is by My Side.

The challenge of filming the biopic of a musical hero with untouchable music (in terms of getting the rights to use it), is that, well, you can’t in fact use it. And so, perhaps as a solution to that impenetrable issue, Jimi’s early days before “Purple Haze” are told onscreen, with Outkast’s Andre 3000 playing the main man himself. Jimi: All Is by My Side depicts Jimi’s year in London as a young, unknown backup guitarist on the brink of fame. While one might wonder if Andre Benjamin has the acting prowess to pull off the lead role of rock history’s greatest guitar hero, or if the film might be in a corner where it could never supply the proper riffs that a Jimi Hendrix pic would necessitate, it was well received by critics at festivals, so this may just be a Jimi Hendrix Experience after all. Jimi: All Is by My Side is set to release in the U.S on September 26th. Watch the trailer below…