In celebration of Kwanzaa, our staff have suggested titles that celebrate the holiday or embody any (or all) of its seven principles: Umoja (Unity), Kujichagulia (Self-Determination), Ujima (Collective Work and Responsibility), Ujamaa (Cooperative Economics), Nia (Purpose), Kuumba (Creativity), and Imani (Faith).
Movies | Music
Ice Cube, Anthony Anderson, Sean Patrick Thomas, Eve and Cedric the Entertainers star in this bust-a-gut, hit comedy about a Chicago barbershop where razor-sharp comedy never goes out of style! Calvin (Ice Cube) is a would-be entrepreneur with big plans...and running his family's barbershop isn't one of them. But, when he impulsively sells the shop to a shady loan shark, he soon realizes just how important the neighborhood parlor is to him...and just how far he'll go to get it back!
A documentary about the struggle and triumph of African-American family, community, and culture, using Kwanzaa as a vehicle to celebrate the African-American experience. The seven principles of Kwanzaa (unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity and faith) are so important to African-Americans today. The documentary explores the holiday's growth out of the Black Power Movement in the 1960s to its present-day reality as a global, pan-African holiday embraced by over 40 million celebrants.
A quest for redemption is unfolding in Washington, D.C. Thanks to the forward-looking Incarceration Reduction Amendment Act, also known as Second Chance legislation, three men who were sentenced to life in prison in their youth and young adulthood have the chance to be released back to their families and communities.
A rediscovered treasure of 1990s DIY filmmaking, Cauleen Smith's Drylongso embeds an incisive look at racial injustice within a lovingly handmade buddy movie/murder mystery/romance. Alarmed by the rate at which the young Black men around her are dying, brash Oakland art student Pica attempts to preserve their existence in Polaroid snapshots, along the way forging a friendship with a woman in an abusive relationship and experiencing love, heartbreak, and the everyday threat of violence. Capturing the vibrant community spirit of Oakland in the nineties, Smith crafts both a rare cinematic celebration of Black female creativity and a moving elegy for a generation of lost African American men.
Homecoming is the first film to explore the rural roots of African American life. It chronicles the generations-old struggle of African Americans for land of their own which pitted them against both the Southern white power structure and the federal agencies responsible for helping them. Director Charlene Gilbert weaves this history together with a fond portrait of her own Georgia farming family into what she calls, "A story of land and love." Like so much African American history, the Black farmers' story is one of perseverance in the face of prejudice and perjured promises. As part of radical Reconstruction, Congress allotted 45 million acres of land to former slaves but the rapid reimposition of white supremacy meant that little land was ever actually distributed. Despite formidable obstacles, one million African Americans, mostly former sharecroppers, managed to purchase over 15,000,000 acres of land by 1910.
A timeless love story set in early 1970s Harlem involving newly engaged nineteen-year- old Tish and her fiance Fonny who have a beautiful future ahead. But their plans are derailed when Fonny is arrested for a crime he did not commit. Now the pair and their families must fight for justice in the name of love and the promise of the American dream.
Multidisciplinary artists Saul Williams and Anisia Uzeyman bring their unique dynamism to this Afrofuturist vision. It is a sci-fi-punk-musical that's a visually wondrous amalgamation of themes, ideas, and songs that they have been exploring in their work, including on Williams' 2016 album MartyrLoserKing. It takes place in the hilltops of Burundi, where a group of escaped coltan miners form an anti-colonialist computer hacker collective. From their camp in an otherworldly e-waste dump, they attempt a takeover of the authoritarian regime exploiting the region's natural resources, and its people. When an intersex runaway and an escaped miner find each other through cosmic forces, their connection sparks glitches within the greater divine circuitry.
The story of the 1939 Missouri sharecroppers strike reveals the complex issues of cotton farming in the early 1930s and what it was like to be a sharecropper in that time. One wintry morning in January 1939, residents of southeastern Missouri awoke to a startling sight. More than 1,000 sharecroppers - mostly African American but whites too - had camped out alongside two state highways with their families and a few meager belongings. They were taking a stand - against the planters, the federal government, and the desperate conditions of their lives.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s historical struggle to secure voting rights for all people. A dangerous and terrifying campaign that culminated with an epic march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, in 1964.
Joe Gardner is a middle-school band teacher who gets the chance of a lifetime to play at the best jazz club in town. A misstep takes him from New York City to The Great Before, a fantastical place where new souls get their personalities before going to Earth. Determined to return to his life, Joe teams up with a precocious soul, 22, who has never understood the appeal of the human life. As Joe tries to show 22 what's great about life, he may discover the answers to the most important questions.
Now, finally, as James Brown intended: the full show with his celebrated '60s band. Live at Home With His Bad Self arrives on its 50th anniversary newly mixed with seven unreleased performances that even include two actual live instrumentals, 'Lowdown Popcorn' and 'Spinning Wheel
The seventh mixtape project from rapper Chief Keef explores self-determination, self-love, and personal growth.
From the very beginning, fans have fallen in love with Jensen McRae for the sharp, evocative and clear-eyed songwriting. McRae songwriting is vulnerable, yes, but it's also powerful for not holding back. Now, I Don't Know How But They Found Me! Delivers McRae's evolution from a promising young artist to abona fide songwriter and star.
The most recent album from the genre-crossing Nigerian-British artist.
RTJ4 is the fourth studio album by American hip-hop duo Run the Jewels. It features guest appearances from Greg Nice, DJ Premier, 2 Chainz, Pharrell Williams, Mavis Staples, Josh Homme, and frequent collaborator Zack de la Rocha. RTJ4 received widespread acclaim from critics and debuted at number 10 on the US Billboard 200, their first top 10 album on the chart. The album was supported by three singles, "Yankee and the Brave (Ep. 4)," "Ooh La La," and "Just."
Pieces of a Man is the debut studio album by American poet Gil Scott-Heron. The album followed Scott-Heron's debut live album Small Talk at 125th and Lenox (1970) and departed from that album's spoken-word performance, instead Pieces of Man features compositions in a more conventional popular song structure. It marks the first of several collaborations by Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson, who played piano throughout the record and is one of Scott-Heron's most critically acclaimed albums. Music critics have suggested that Scott-Heron's combination of R&B, soul, jazz-funk, and proto-rap influenced the development of electronic dance music and hip-hop.
You've Got to Learn is a live album by American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist, Nina Simone recorded on July 2, 1996 at the the Newport Jazz Festival. On that day the audience was treated to the full range of her artistry; from the opener, a breathtaking version of “You’ve Got to Learn” to a swinging take on “Mississippi Goddam.” After a sustained standing ovation, her fans were rewarded with the show-stopping encore, “Music for Lovers.” This previously unreleased recording makes it clear why hearing Nina Simone in concert was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.
A Southern Gothic is Adia Victoria's acclaimed 2021 album, a deeply personal exploration of her Southern roots as a Black woman, blending blues, rock, and folklore with themes of love, anger, ancestral haunting, and resilience, featuring guests like Matt Berninger (The National) and Jason Isbell, and showcasing her lyrical prowess and evocative "creepy grooves". It reclaims Southern imagery like magnolias to tell a truer story of the South, challenging whitewashed narratives and finding hope within its dark complexities.