June 16, 2021
Whether comedy, drama or science fiction, these shows offer a fresh perspective on Black stories and experiences.
Black creators — from Issa Rae (Insecure) to Barry Jenkins (The Underground Railroad) to Lena Waithe (The Chi) — are behind some of TV's most popular and acclaimed series.
Juneteenth, which celebrates the emancipation of enslaved people in the United States, is the perfect time to check out their work. (The date — June 19 — marks the anniversary of when Black residents of Galveston, Texas, finally received the news that they were free in 1865.)
Here's a rundown of series to binge watch in a variety of genres from these talented Black creators:
Black-ish, created by Kenya Barris
Kenya Barris' trio of ABC sitcoms started with Black-ish, which introduced the well-to-do Johnsons (Anthony Anderson and Tracee Ellis Ross) and their relatable, every-day challenges — spoiled kids, job stress, interfering grandparents. But the show also tackles issues of particular importance to Black Americans, such as police brutality and the legacy of slavery.
Since its 2014 premiere, Black-ish has earned multiple Emmy and Golden Globe nominations. The acclaim and popularity among viewers prompted two spinoff series, Grown-ish and Mixed-ish.
Queen Sugar, created by Ava DuVernay
As the first Black woman to receive an Oscar nomination for Best Director for Selma, Ava DuVernay has paid it forward by hiring many Black women as writers and directors for OWN series Queen Sugar. The drama follows three adult siblings (Rutina Wesley, Dawn-Lyen Gardner and Kofi Siriboe) who inherit their father's sugarcane farm in rural Louisiana and face long-standing racial inequity.
The Underground Railroad, created by Barry Jenkins
Following the Oscar-winning film Moonlight and the acclaimed If Beale Street Could Talk, Barry Jenkins turned to the small screen with The Underground Railroad, an adaptation of Colson Whitehead's bestselling novel. The Amazon Prime Video series reimagines the Underground Railroad of antebellum America as an actual railroad with trains, tunnels and tracks. Slaves Cora (Thuso Mbedu) and Caesar (Aaron Pierre) hope to ride it to freedom.
Insecure, created by Issa Rae
Writer-actor Issa Rae made a name for herself with the acclaimed web series Awkward Black Girl, which she used as the foundation for the HBO hit series, Insecure. The semi-autobiographical comedy has earned Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for putting a spotlight on the experiences of Black women. Issa (Rae) and Molly (Yvonne Orji) navigate their ever-changing careers, romantic relationships and friendships while living in L.A.
The Twilight Zone, created by Jordan Peele
The modern master of horror puts a fresh spin on the venerable franchise The Twilight Zone. Jordan Peele serves as narrator and host of the anthology series, taking the place of the iconic Rod Serling. The show features a diverse cast grappling with supernatural phenomena, racism, social issues, misinformation and alien invasions — all with a twist at the heart of each story.
Girlfriends, created by Mara Brock Akil
In 2000, Mara Brock Akil looked at the television landscape and saw the most popular shows, like Friends and Sex and the City, featured all-white casts. So she created her own UPN series about four Black women and their experiences with love, family, careers, feminism and racism.
Girlfriends — co-starring Tracee Ellis Ross, Golden Brooks, Persia White and Jill Marie Jones — features characters with different perspectives and personalities who still support and lift each other up. Two decades later, a new generation of viewers are meeting these Girlfriends on Netflix.
Lovecraft Country, created by Misha Green
In Misha Green's adaptation of Matt Ruff's novel, Lovecraft Country, supernatural monsters aren't much more terrifying that the racist humans encountered by Black travelers on a trek through 1950s Jim Crow America. The HBO drama follows a young Black man named Atticus (Jonathan Majors) as he sets out to find his missing father, taking friend Letitia (Jurnee Smollett) and Uncle George (Courtney B. Vance) along for a journey that turns into a fantastical nightmare.
Power, created by Courtney A. Kemp
After meetings with rapper Curtis “50 Cent" Jackson in a Los Angeles coffeehouse, Courtney A. Kemp developed the idea for Starz's Power, which follows a drug dealer named Ghost (Omari Hardwick) as he tries to leave the criminal world and focus on his legitimate nightclub business. Kemp drew from Jackson's past, as well as her own father's story, to build the show's universe. It's been so popular that the network ordered several spinoff series.
The Chi, created by Lena Waithe
Lena Waithe began developing her Showtime series about a young Black man coming of age in Chicago's South Side back in 2015 — before she received accolades for writing and acting on Aziz Ansari's Master of None (she was the first Black woman to win the Emmy for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series). The Chi is a deeply personal story for Waithe, who grew up in the South Side and wanted to portray the neighborhood and its predominantly Black residents in a more nuanced way.
P-Valley, created by Katori Hall
The playwright, actress and activist has penned The Mountaintop about Martin Luther King, Jr., and the book for the Tina: The Tina Turner Musical on Broadway. For Starz, Katori Hall adapted P-Valley, her own play about the employees of a strip club in the Mississippi Delta. P-Valley is far from titillating, though; the characters are viewed with respect and empathy. The show has clicked with audiences and will have a second season.
