A-List Black Artists For Freedom Coalition Launches Call To Action For Cultural Institutions On Juneteenth

“Cane River” (1982), a recently unearthed debut from the late writer/director Horace Jenkins, is now, after a year of remastering, available for streaming. LISTEN: Rob McElhenney On Evolving ‘It’s Always Sunny,’ Making Quarantined ‘Mythic Quest’ & More [Be Reel Podcast] Part love story, part critique of colorism in Louisana, “Cane River” follows prodigal son Peter Metoyer (Richard Romain) as he finds a place in his hometown after an aborted football career in the big city.

MisterWives have curated a playlist of music by the Black artists who inspired their love of music in the first place.The collection of 20 songs runs the gamut of modern music history, from classic throwbacks by pioneering artists like Sam Cooke ("A Change Is Gonna Come"), Aretha Franklin ("Respect") and Whitney Houston ("I Wanna Dance With Somebody [Who Loves Me]) to urgently of-the-moment releases by Beyoncé ("Black Parade"), Childish Gambino ("This Is America"), Lizzo ("Good As Hell") and

Billboard hope to uplift and empower African Americans during this cloudy and dubious time. For the month of June, Billboard had artists provide a playlist designed to remedy the heartaches endured by the Black community.Fresh off the release of his latest Lyrics to Go episode No.

Colin Kaepernick’s formative teen years will be the subject of a new scripted drama series from Ava DuVernay.

Kendrick Sampson has penned a powerful open letter calling for the Hollywood industry to divest from the police and make big changes to «affirm, defend and invest in Black lives.» The star wrote the letter alongside actress Tessa Thompson and Black Lives Matter cofounders Patrisse Cullors and Melina Abdullah.More than 300 Black artists and executives have signed the letter, including Idris Elba, Kerry Washington, Michael B. Jordan, Queen Latifah, Sterling K.

Trevor Noah says the lack of true understanding from white corporate America regarding Black people is painfully obvious.

In a letter developed by Kendrick Sampson, Tessa Thompson, and Black Lives Matter cofounders Patrisse Cullors and Melina Abdullah, Black artists and executives in Hollywood are demanding a reimagining of the entertainment industry.The letter calls on Hollywood to divest from police while investing in anti-racist content, Black careers, and the local community.More than 300 Black artists and executives, including Cynthia Erivo, Viola Davis, Issa Rae, and Billy Porter, have signed the

Kendrick Sampson After co-organizing a demonstration in Los Angeles at which he was hit with a police baton and shot seven times with rubber bullets, Kendrick Sampson (“Insecure,” “Miss Juneteenth”) has penned a letter to the entertainment industry at large, asking Hollywood to divest from the police and invest in the Black community.

Variety Staff Follow Us on TwitterOn the heels of Juneteenth, a group of 30-plus artist managers, attorneys, business managers, agents and other industry executives have joined forces as the Black Music Action Coalition.According to the announcement, “This advocacy organization endeavors to uphold and actualize the mission of Black Lives Matter in the music industry and reach racial justice not just across labels, publishers, agencies, distributors, and DSP’s but throughout society at large.”As

told CNN’s Anderson Cooper in an interview that will air Sunday. “That’s fundamentally what’s happening in America.

John Legend, Tessa Thompson and 1,000 other Black artists in the entertainment industry are coming together to put an end to the racial injustice.

Ellise Shafer editorA new collective of Black workers in the arts and entertainment field, called Black Artists for Freedom, has released a statement on their website commemorating Juneteenth and calling on cultural institutions to make changes in order to eliminate racial injustice.The collective consists of over 1,000 Black actors, musicians, filmmakers, authors, painters and poets, including Academy Award, Grammy, Tony and Pulitzer Prize winners. Tessa Thompson, Sterling K.

Spotify has announced it will celebrate Juneteenth and Black Music Month by featuring black artists only in this Friday’s (June 19) edition of its flagship playlist, ‘New Music Friday’.The weekly playlist is one of the most streamed on the platform with over 3.5 million followers. It updates every Friday at midnight EST/Thursday 9pm PST.In addition, Spotify’s ‘New Music Friday’ billboards in Times Square will be dedicated solely to black artists on June 19.

Oprah Winfrey continued to have an open conversation with black artists and activists on Wednesday aimed at determining how America can help eradicate systemic inequality and racism. Winfrey's two-night conversation, called "Where Do We Go From Here?", featuring director Ava DuVernay, former U.S.

, which has been for perpetuating white savior tropes. (It's also directed by a white man and based on a book by a white woman.)Don't watch The Help.

here.Here are the programmes that Netflix has recommended:This is a film that explores the history of racial inequality in the United States.Created by filmmaker Ava DuVernay, it focuses on how the nation's prisons are disproportionately filled with African-Americans.This film follows the killing of Mark Duggan in London in 2011 ignites the worst civil unrest in recent British history.Kalief Browder, 16, spent three years in Rikers Island jail - including two in solitary confinement - awaiting

"We find ourselves on a precipice, on a tipping point," Oprah Winfrey said as she opened a conversation with black artists and activists on Tuesday aimed at determining how America can funnel the rage and protests of recent weeks into action to eradicate systemic inequality and racism.

Ava DuVernay has launched The Law Enforcement Accountability Project (LEAP), a new media initiative to keep watch on police abuse and malpractice. Police brutality and racial prejudice in U.S.

Ava Duvernay has launched The Law Enforcement Accountability Project (LEAP), a new media initiative to keep watch on police abuse and malpractice.Police brutality and racial prejudice in U.S.