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Here's a Golden (Globes) Opportunity to Call Out the B.S.
So, that happened. It’s always happening. Working in the entertainment industry means awards season is akin to the Super Bowl. Using that same Super Bowl analogy, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) committed a significant fumble during the 4th quarter just one week prior to their awards ceremony, the 78th Golden Globe Awards. In a…
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Golden Globes' HFPA States the Obvious: 'We Need to Bring in Black Members'
In a display of utter disrespect during Black History Month—of all months—it was recently revealed that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association (the journalist-based voting collective of the Golden Globes) has absolutely no Black members. Frankly, most Black people already figured that—and if you’re a Black person working in Hollywood with insider knowledge, you knew it.…
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Make It Rain With TwitCoins: Is There Anyone You'd Pay to Read Their 'Super' Tweets?
If you’re an active member of the Black Twitter community, chances are you’ve heard some variation of the phrase, “How is Twitter free?!” after something super dramatic and entertaining happens, rivaling the best television show during sweeps. Well, bitch, we’re about to find out how free it’s not. Along with introducing a community feature (similar…
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O-T Fagbenle Will Be the Barack to Viola Davis' Michelle in Showtime Anthology Series, The First Lady
In 2019, we first heard that Viola Davis would be portraying former (and forever) first lady Michelle Obama in an upcoming Showtime anthology series aptly titled, The First Lady. After quite a wait, we finally know who will be portraying Barack Obama in the series. Variety has confirmed that O-T Fagbenle (The Handmaid’s Tale) will…
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From Uptown to World Wide Funk: Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak and Bootsy Collins Made an Album, Y'all
It’s Friday and I’m at work (from home), but I’d “rather be with you.” Actually, I kind of am! Hey, readers of The Root, I have some great news to end the week on. There is an actual body of work featuring Bruno Mars, Anderson .Paak and Bootsy Collins (the latter of whom is listed…
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The Empire of Ebony: Lisa Cortés to Direct Documentary on the Rise and Impact of the 1st Black Media Empire
The first-ever Black media empire, Ebony, is getting its own documentary. Lisa Cortés (All In: The Fight For Democracy, The Apollo) will direct the film and Academy Award and Emmy Award winning filmmaker Roger Ross Williams’ (The Apollo, Life Animated) will produce via One Story Up. Cortés will also produce, as well. Here’s what you…
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Nostalgia-palooza: Paramount+ Is Rebooting Behind the Music, Yo! MTV Raps and Unplugged
Remember when music videos used to play on television? Of course you do, because nostalgic internet users talk about it all the time, often with wistful sighs. Recently, a graphic floated around on Twitter showing the programming slate for MTV’s current television shows. Which show dominated damn near every damn broadcast time slot? Ridiculousness, a TV…
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'I Wants Us to Feel Seen So Bad': Amber Ruffin to Air on NBC, Making Her the Only Black Woman With a Network Late-Night Show
Since the very start of late night television talk/variety shows (Broadway Open House was the first to air in a late night slot in 1950 on NBC), we’ve all become accustomed to watching a succession of white men sitting at a desk and interviewing famous folks—after warming us up with a relevant monologue, of course.…
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You Get Some Black Joy! And You Get Some Black Joy! Everybody Black Gets Some Black Joy! Love, The Root
Black joy is unmatched. We’re near the end of Black History Month, but you know we’re poppin’ the other 11 months of the year, too. So, a joyful trio of The Root staff members Danielle Belton (editor-in-chief), Michael Harriot (senior writer) and I, Tonja Renée Stidhum (staff entertainment writer) decided to spread some joy to…
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The Devil Has a New Blue Dress to Wear—Walter Mosley's Easy Rawlins Books Are Being Adapted for TV
The leading character of the 1995 neo-noir mystery Devil in a Blue Dress, Ezekiel “Easy” Rawlins is getting his own TV series. Originally portrayed in the feature film by Denzel Washington, Rawlins is a character created by author Walter Mosley and is featured in his bestselling books. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Amblin Television is…
