Black Movie Musicals
Apart from acclaimed musical biopics, there weren't many traditional musicals made in Hollywood and that featured an all-Black or predominantly-Black cast. Here are those that made up for the injustice... and a few that also made history.
Which of these Black movie musicals is your favorite?
After voting, you might discuss the list here
Which of these Black movie musicals is your favorite?
After voting, you might discuss the list here
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15 titles
- DirectorOtto PremingerStarsHarry BelafonteDorothy DandridgePearl BaileyContemporary version of the Bizet opera, with new lyrics and an African-American cast.
- DirectorOtto PremingerRouben MamoulianStarsSidney PoitierDorothy DandridgeSammy Davis Jr.A woman whose past is scorned by nearly everyone around her meets a man who'd love her regardlessly- if only everyone else would allow them to.
- DirectorAlan ParkerStarsEddie BarthIrene CaraLee CurreriA chronicle of the lives of several teenagers who attend a New York high school for students gifted in the performing arts.
- DirectorAlbert MagnoliStarsPrinceApollonia KoteroMorris DayA young musician, tormented by an abusive situation at home, must contend with a rival singer, a burgeoning romance, and his own dissatisfied band, as his star begins to rise.
- DirectorBill CondonStarsBeyoncéJamie FoxxEddie MurphyA trio of black female soul singers cross over to the pop charts in the early 1960s, facing their own personal struggles along the way.
- DirectorSidney LumetStarsDiana RossMichael JacksonNipsey RussellAn adaptation of "The Wizard of Oz" that tries to capture the essence of the African-American experience.
- DirectorAndrew L. StoneStarsLena HorneBill RobinsonCab Calloway and His Cotton Club OrchestraThe relationship between an aspiring dancer and a popular songstress provides a retrospective of the great African-American entertainers of the early 1900s.
- DirectorVincente MinnelliBusby BerkeleyStarsEthel WatersEddie 'Rochester' AndersonLena HorneA compulsive gambler dies during a shooting, but he'll receive a second chance to reform himself and to make up with his worried wife.
- DirectorSam O'SteenStarsPhilip Michael ThomasIrene CaraLonette McKeeThree sisters form a singing group in 1950s Harlem, but success threatens to ruin their relationship forever.
- DirectorMichael SchultzStarsSheila E.Joseph SimmonsDarryl McDanielsThe story of a man who has started a new hip-hop/rap label called Krush Groove.
- DirectorSpike LeeStarsLaurence FishburneGiancarlo EspositoTisha CampbellA not so popular young man wants to pledge to a popular fraternity at his historically black college.
- DirectorRobert TownsendStarsRobert TownsendMichael WrightLeonThe story of the rise and fall of an African American vocal group.
- DirectorBill DukeStarsWhoopi GoldbergKathy NajimyMaggie SmithShowgirl Deloris Van Cartier returns as Sister Mary Clarence to teach music to a group of Catholic students whose run-down school is slated for closure.
- DirectorJonathan LynnStarsCuba Gooding Jr.BeyoncéMike EppsA New York advertising executive travels to a small Southern town to collect an inheritance but finds he must create a gospel choir and lead it to success before he can collect.
- DirectorBryan BarberStarsAndré 3000Big BoiTerrence HowardAt a sexy, sizzling nightclub, pianist Percival lives life by the rules, while Rooster, the club's flashy lead performer, struts his stuff on the stage. But all changes when greed, fame and murder threaten to destroy them and the joint.