Music & Movies

In September 2021, playwright/performersEisa Davis and Jillian Walker met to discuss Walker's performance ritual, SKiNFoLK: An American Show (forthcoming from 53rd State Press in March 2022). InJanuary 2022, they met again to discuss Davis's installation...

Now available in paperback, William C. Banfield's acclaimed collection of interviews delves into the lives and work of forty-one Black composers. Each of the profiled artists offers a candid self-portrait that explores areas from training and...

African American westerns have a rich cinematic history and visual culture. Mia Mask examines the African American western hero within the larger context of film history by considering how Black westerns evolved and approached wide-ranging goals. Woody...

A timely exploration of Oscar-nominated Black actors and the complicated legacy of the Academy Awards. In Black Oscars: From Mammy to Minny, What the Academy Awards Tell Us about African Americans, Frederick W. Gooding Jr. draws on American, African...

Named one of the best music books of 2017 by The Wall Street JournalA unique and kaleidoscopic look into the life, legacy, and electricity of the pop legend Prince and his wideranging impact on our cultureBen Greenman, New York Times bestselling author,...

Pittsburgh Jazz documents the almost forgotten magic created in the city of Pittsburgh by a host of artists, uptown inner city streets, and jazz joints that served patrons from a menu packed full of delightful music. The magical improvised songs,...

The story of Snoop's musical and spiritual journey to Jamaica, reaching its culmination during the recording of his most recent album and captured in VICE and Snoopadelic Films documentary Reincarnated. Immediately following the death of longtime friend...

(Piano/Vocal/Guitar Artist Songbook). Matching folio to the chart-topping break-out album featuring 14 tracks: Acquainted * As You Are * Angel * Can't Feel My Face * Dark Times * Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey) * The Hills * Losers * Prisoner * Real...

JIMI is the ultimate tribute to the greatest guitar player in rock and roll history, celebrating what would have been Jimi Hendrix's 80th birthday on November 27, 2022. This comprehensive visual celebration is an official collaboration with Jimi's...

A rare document of the 1960s Black Arts Movement featuring Albert Ayler, Amiri Baraka, Milford Graves, Sun Ra, Cecil Taylor and many more, The Cricket fostered critical and political dialogue for Black musicians and writersEdited by poets and writers...

The overlooked yet vibrant history of Black participation in American film, from the beginning of cinema through the civil rights movementFrom the dawn of the medium onward, Black filmmakers have helped define American cinema. Black performers, producers...

An inspirational trove of film posters and ephemera, photographs, artwork and more from the collection of Spike Lee For nearly four decades, Spike Lee has made movies that demand our attention. His extensive filmography reflects an unflinching critique...