Black Music Month 2024: How These 5 Black Artists are Shaping Film & TV

Melodic Masters to Screen Stars: How These 5 Black Musical Artists are Shaping Film & TV in Black Music Month 2024

Black Music Month stands as a vibrant celebration, a testament to the profound influence of the African American musical journey, resonating deeply across the nation’s cultural landscape. These five Black artists have seamlessly transitioned from shaping the musical landscape to illuminating both big and small screens with their unparalleled talent. 

Grammy and Emmy award winning artist, Swizz Beatz, the maestro of beats, orchestrates a new symphony in MGM+’s blazing Crime Thriller series, “Hotel Cocaine.” Amidst the neon lights of Miami’s Mutiny Hotel, Cuban exile Roman Compte, portrayed by Danny Pino, navigates a labyrinth of power and peril, title theme song by Swizz’s electrifying musical composition. Swizz is also the Executive Music Supervisor of MGM+ hitdrama series “Godfather of Harlem and EP and star in Hulu’s “Drive with Swizz ” with his son Nasir Dean. FKA Twigs takes flight in “The Crow,” a haunting tale of love and vengeance that spans the realms of the living and the dead. Twigs’ musical style showcases the varied musical experience with her dance/electronic sounds since debuting her EP in 2012. The British native continues to break barriers in her ever evolving journey.

Bellah Kyazike, a rising star shines in Hulu’s “Queenie,” a poignant journey of self-discovery set against the vibrant backdrop of south London. The North London -based singer/songwriter has been named “The One to Watch ” in the premiere British publications such as British Vogue. Kyazike’s debut in the highly anticipated Hulu series marks the beginning of a transcendent career for the songstress. Luke James steps into the chilling world of “THEM: THE SCARE,” where LAPD Detective Dawn Reeve, portrayed by Deborah Ayorinde, battles a darkness that threatens to consume her. James, known for his sultry sounds and looks, is bringing audiences into a chilling world in the new Prime Video anthology. 

And in the heart of TV and Harlem’s turmoil, Rome Flynn embodies the spirit of defiance in Chicago Fire and in the new season of “Godfather of Harlem.” As Frank Lucas, he challenges the status quo, clashing with crime bosses and confronting the legacy of Malcolm X’s tragic demise.

As Black Music Month unfolds, these five artists’ unwavering commitment to their artistry has weaved their stories into the tapestry of American culture, their journeys from music to film and television has left an indelible mark on the landscape of entertainment.

Swizz Beatz – Hotel Cocaine

MGM+’s new original 1970s Crime Thriller series, Hotel Cocaine, takes place in blazing Miami and is sure to get hot, humid and deadly FAST. With producers Chris Brancato (known for Godfather of Harlem and Narcos) and Guillermo Navarro (known for Pan’s Labyrinth), this series will be a must watch crime thriller for the Summer. Hotel Cocaine takes you to the center of pleasure and pain-filled Miami, Mutiny Hotel. This is the story of Roman Compte, played by Danny Pino, a Cuban exile and Mutiny Hotel general manager. In a glamorous nightclub and restaurant bustling with Florida businessmen, politicians, Narcos, CIA and FBI agents, models, sports stars, and musicians, Compte strives to maintain his American dream. Additional cast includes Yul Vazquez, Michael Chiklis, Mark Feuerstein with the theme music/song by Swizz Beatz. Trailer Link Here 

FKA Twigs – The Crow

THE CROW (Lionsgate) Release Date: August 23, 2024 Cast Members: Bill Skarsgård, FKA twigs, Danny Huston Synopsis: When soulmates Eric and Shelly are brutally murdered, Eric is given the chance to save his true love by sacrificing himself and sets out to seek revenge, traversing the worlds of the living and the dead to put the wrong things right. Trailer Link Here

Bellah- Queenie 

QUEENIE (Hulu/Onyx Collective) Release Date: June 7, 2024 Cast Members: Dionne Brown, Bellah, Samuel Adewunmi & Joseph Marcell. Queenie Jenkins is a 25-year-old Jamaican British woman living in south London, straddling two cultures and slotting neatly into neither. After a messy breakup with her long-term boyfriend, Queenie seeks comfort in all the wrong places and begins to realize she has to face the past head-on before she can rebuild. Trailer Link Here

Luke James – THEM: THE SCARE

THEM: THE SCARE will once again be set in Los Angeles (the first installment, subtitled COVENANT, took place in Compton circa 1952 but will move the time frame forward to 1991). The story centers on LAPD Homicide Detective Dawn Reeve (Deborah Ayorinde), who is assigned to a new case: the gruesome murder of a foster home mother that has left even the most hardened detectives shaken. Navigating a tumultuous time in Los Angeles, with a city on the razor’s edge of chaos, Dawn is determined to stop the killer. But as she draws closer to the truth, something ominous and malevolent grips her and her family…THEM: THE SCARE is a co-production of Sony Pictures Television and Amazon Studios. Series creator Little Marvin serves as showrunner and executive producer with Miri Yoon and Roy Lee of Vertigo Entertainment and Steve Prinz. Trailer Link Here

Rome Flynn -Godfather of Harlem

Rome Flynn (With Love, Fantasy Football, How To Get Away With Murder) as a recurring guest star to the upcoming fourth season of Godfather of Harlem. Flynn will portray Frank Lucas; a country boy from North Carolina who ventured to Harlem and, after initial friction with gangster Bumpy Johnson, eventually rose to become Bumpy’s fierce defender and right-hand man. Denzel Washington depicted Lucas in the movie American Gangster, but in Godfather of Harlem, his story begins ten years earlier than in the film. From Chris Brancato, creator of Narcos and Hotel Cocaine, Season 4 of Godfather of Harlem will also see the return of Ilfenesh Hadera, Lucy Fry, Antoinette Crowe-Legacy, and Erik LaRay Harvey, among others. The first three seasons are available to stream on MGM+. Trailer Link Here

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