Fruitvale Station, the painful glimpse into the life of Oscar Grant, who was killed in 2009 by a transit cop in the Bay Area, put both director-writer Ryan Coogler and actor Michael B. Jordan on the Hollywood fast track. Already a Sundance darling, Fruitvale Station got even more attention because its theatrical release in 2013…

Google the soulful ballad “And I Am Telling You (I’m Not Going)” and Jennifer Hudson’s name pops up first. Not Tony Award winner Jennifer Holliday, who originated the role of Effie and sang the legendary showstopper in the original 1981 Broadway smash Dreamgirls—which is why this Unsung has been a long time coming. As powerful…

It’s hard to think of a film franchise bigger than Bond. Dr. No, the first one, hit the big screen in 1962, and the latest one, Spectre, the 24th in the installment, opens Friday. During that 53-year span, the following five black actresses have orbited the 007 universe.   Trina Parks: Diamonds Are Forever (1971)…

There’s a new gladiator in town, and his name is Marcus Walker. Well, Scandal fans know he is not completely new. When fans were first introduced to Marcus, he was an activist at the center of a Ferguson, Mo.-esque scenario in which a black male teenager was shot and killed by a white police officer.…

“I think Chanté exemplifies the title Unsung,” says Jermaine Dupri’s father, Michael Mauldin, who once managed Chanté Moore. And he definitely has a strong argument. It’s hard to see how Moore—stunningly beautiful, with a pleasant personality, down-to-earth demeanor, killer vocals and strong songwriting chops—didn’t drown in gold and platinum plaques. After all, quite a few…

The black-British acting invasion hasn’t slowed, and Cush Jumbo, who popped up in the season premiere of The Good Wife on CBS, is the latest import. In her native England, Jumbo distinguished herself on the theatrical stage, winning awards and nominations for performances in Shakespeare’s As You Like It and the all-female version of Julius…

Thanks to The Wire, arguably television’s most underrated series of all time, Andre Royo is affectionately known as “Bubbles” or “Bubs,” the drug-addicted informant. But it’s been some time since he’s been back in the mix in a television series. Although he has a role as Mayor Robert “Bobo” Boston on Amazon’s Hand of God,…

It’s no secret that Lee Daniels initially envisioned Wesley Snipes—over Terrence Howard—in the role of Lucious Lyon on Empire. While Snipes is not ruling the Lyon clan, he has joined TV’s diversity party with NBC’s The Player, a high-concept, action-packed drama set in Vegas where high rollers gamble on whether a player will stop a…

Bomani Jones is a familiar face to sports fans. At ESPN he pulls double duty, and double mediums, as one-third of the hip-hop-friendly Highly Questionable and then holds down the fort on his own radio show, The Right Time With Bomani Jones. Sports guru is not the typical career path for the son of two…

Even those who question how a recognizable ’90s rapper like YoYo is “unsung” should appreciate this installment of TV One’s juggernaut show. “Twenty-five years and I’m still standing,” Yolanda Whitaker says of her journey. While it’s no secret that female rappers were—and still are—scarce, most of us can only imagine how hard being in the…