I recently watched the documentary Summer of Soul (… or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), directed by Ahmir (Questlove) Thompson, of Philadelphia band The Roots. Questlove is also a DJ, record producer, and author, among other things–the man seems to have endless talent and energy. If you haven’t seen Summer of Soul yet, do yourself a favor and watch it. (It can be seen in theaters and on Hulu.)

Summer of Soul is about the Harlem Cultural Festival of 1969, which consisted of a series of six outdoor summer concerts in Mount Morris Park (now Marcus Garvey Park), drawing more than 300,000 audience members. Singer Tony Lawrence organized the festival, and it was filmed by television producer Hal Tulchin. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s because the festival footage sat in a basement, largely unseen, until now. Was it just forgotten due to being overshadowed by Woodstock, which happened the same summer, or purposely hidden? Questlove intersperses interviews with concert footage that puts the music in the social and political context of the day and celebrates the power and joy of the performances.

“Me being a DJ is exactly what informed me on how to tell this story,” Questlove said in a virtual press conference for the film. “This isn’t the only story out there. Probably the most shocking thing that I’ve learned in the last month is that there’s about six to seven others. Maybe this film can be an entry, sort of a sea change for these stories to finally get out [and] really for us to acknowledge that … one of the first-ever Black festivals is important to our history.” 

You will be treated to never-before-seen concert performances by Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone, Sly & the Family Stone, Gladys Knight & the Pips, B.B. King, Mahalia Jackson, and more. The festival celebrated African American music and culture and promoted Black pride and unity. The documentary was released to rave reviews at Sundance, where it won both the grand jury prize and audience award and subsequently sold for more than $12 million, the biggest price tag for a documentary in Sundance’s history.

For me, the music brought back memories of my childhood in the early 1970s. As a white child growing up in rural Pennsylvania, I didn’t understand much about what was going on in America at the time, nor did I grasp the cultural significance of the music. Today, I see this music and these memories from a different perspective. It’s wonderful that Questlove made this film, which shines a long-overdue light on a groundbreaking musical event and celebrates Black history and culture.