The Complicated Figure of James Brown: “Music and Life” – The Legacy Beyond the Music
In the United States – and in much of the world – blacks were not black. They were, in a euphemism for political correctness in a terribly segregated country, “colored people.” But the sixties arrived and the pioneers arrived. Some, like Malcolm X, Angela Davis, and Martin Luther King, achieved dreams thanks to law, religion, or political pressure; others, thanks to popular culture, also managed to reach places unexplored in 400 years. One of them was James Brown, composer and singer, a southern boy of humble origins and from a broken home who effectively made black people black. In August 1968, four months after King’s assassination, he wrote and recorded Say It Loud – I’m Black & I’m Proud.
The first episode of James Brown: Say It Loud, directed by Deborah Riley Draper and broadcast on the American network A&E on Monday and Tuesday (the first of which can be seen, in some countries, on the Internet), the story is discussed. Brown’s power in establishing a then-unique sound and linking it to a community, and also in providing it with a recognizable identity through music. “The word black is something [mal] that has basically been placed on the black man in America. And hey, I’m black and I’m proud, but I don’t want to have to say, ‘I’m black,’ like you have to say, ‘You’re white.’ I want to say that we are people and that we are brothers and that we have the same struggle,” an African-American man describes in one of the episodes, in old, archival images. After King’s death, the fight for civil rights became fiercer and the word black took on a new meaning, among others thanks to Brown’s theme.
With old footage and interviews with audiences from the time, but also from the current moment, this evolution can be seen. “The word black is something that has basically been placed on the black man in America. With old footage and interviews with audiences from the time, but also from the current moment, this evolution can be seen. “The word black is something that has basically been placed on the black man in America. And hey, I’m black and I’m proud, but I don’t want to have to say, ‘I’m black,’ like you have to say, ‘You’re white.’ I want to say that we are people and that we are brothers and that we have the same struggle,” an African-American man describes in one of the episodes, in old, archival images. After King’s death, the fight for civil rights became fiercer and the word black took on a new meaning, among others thanks to Brown’s theme.
The documentary delves deep into Brown’s personal life, revealing details about his relationships, and personal struggles. Brown married four times and had nine children, leading to chaotic, complex and violent relationships. The film is said to show both the highs and lows of his life from the perspective of his daughters.
The wives of the world, in his life, nor even in his death, Brown’s personal life was filled with turmoil, chaos, and conflict. The documentary explores it all, providing viewers with an intimate look into his personal life. Whether the depiction affects Brown’s character and legacy remains to be seen.