Ever since I could remember, February not only signaled the start of Black History Month, but it also meant that networks would release a glut of feature films and documentaries aimed at Black audiences. When I was younger, I was mesmerized by PBS’ award-winning 14-part docuseries, Eyes on the Prize, and later, films like Selma, Malcolm X, Black Panther, Do the Right Thing, and Get Out would get lots of play on TV.
These days, Black films and TV shows are not just relegated to Black History Month, thanks to the work of talented creators — and Hollywood’s push to tell more inclusive stories. With that said, February is still a great time to highlight projects, and here are seven things to watch this month.
How It Feels to be Free
Directed by Yoruba Richen, How It Feels to be Free follows the life and career of six Black women entertainers — Lena Horne, Abbey Lincoln, Nina Simone, Diahann Carroll, Cicely Tyson, and Pam Grier — who “challenged an entertainment industry deeply complicit in perpetuating racist stereotypes, and transformed themselves and their audiences in the process.” Featuring interviews with its subjects, and others like Alicia Keys, Halle Berry, Lena Waithe, Samuel L. Jackson, and more.
Watch it on PBS.org
Crack: Cocaine, Corruption & Conspiracy
Stanley Nelson is one of the preeminent documentarians of our time. For his latest project, Nelson trains his lens on the crack era, moving beyond sensational headlines about “crack babies” and a growing generation of “superpredators” to peel back the layers of what actually happened when the government declared a war on drugs and disproportionately cracked down on Black and Brown communities all across the country.
Watch it on Netflix
One Night in Miami
Oscar-winning actor Regina King makes her directorial debut with One Night In Miami, a fictionalized take on a night when Muhammad Ali, Sam Cooke, Jim Brown, and Malcolm X gather together to celebrate Ali’s iconic win over former heavyweight champion Sonny Liston. During the celebration, the men get into a heated exchange about their role in the Civil Rights Movement and how to best use their platforms to further its cause.
Watch it on Amazon Prime Video
Judas and the Black Messiah
On December 4, 1969 Chicago police officers stormed the apartment of rising Black Panther Party leader Fred Hampton, killing him in a hail of bullets. Before his assassination, Hampton founded the Rainbow Coalition, a group that hoped to bring together the Panthers with other local groups, including street gangs to push for social justice. Because of this, he was considered a threat to both local and federal authorities. In Judas and the Black Messiah, director Shaka King details what led up to Hampton’s killing, and the man who helped set it in motion.
Premiering on HBO Max on February 12
Hip Hop: Songs that Shook America
It’s hard to understate the impact hip hop has had on our lives. But the genre has gone from being an underground phenomenon to ruling the Top 40 charts within the past 40 years. Like any other game-changing art form, hip hop has been the soundtrack to some of this country’s most important moments, which is why Roots’ members Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson and Tariq “Black Thought” Trotter teamed up with producers Shawn Gee and Alex Gibney to take a look at the Songs that Shook America.
Watch it on AMC.com
Three by Madeline Anderson
Madeline Anderson is one of the unsung heroines of Black History. According to the Smithsonian, Anderson is credited as the first Black woman to produce and direct a televised documentary film and she worked as an in-house producer for both Sesame Street and The Electric Company. Throughout her career, Anderson produced several pivotal works, including three seminal films — Integration Report 1 (1960), A Tribute to Malcolm X (1967), and I Am Somebody.
Watch them on The Criterion Channel
John Lewis: Good Trouble
Throughout his life, John Lewis was committed to justice. As a young activist, he put his life on the line to secure voting rights for Black folks, and as a Congressman, he continued to push the country forward. Before he passed away in 2020, director Dawn Porter chronicled Lewis’ extraordinary life and six-decade-long commitment to equality.
Watch on several streaming platforms
Britni Danielle is the Culture Editor at Shondaland.
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