Chances are, you may have heard their music from somewhere. Now, discover the meteoric legacy of the 60s band Sly & the Family Stone.
SLY LIVES! (aka The Burden of Black Genius), the new film from Academy Award winner, Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, is now streaming on Hulu and Disney+ in their streaming bundle. The documentary examines the life and legacy of Sly & The Family Stone, the groundbreaking band led by the charismatic and enigmatic Sly Stone. This film captures the rise, reign and subsequent fadeout of one of pop music’s most influential artists, but also shines a light on how Black artists in America navigate the unseen burden that comes with their success. Drawing from his own personal experience and relationships, Questlove tells an empathetic human story about the cost of genius, reframing the way we all engage with pop culture.
The film features notable guests such as Andre 3000, D’Angelo, Chaka Khan, Q-Tip, Nile Rogers, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, George Clinton, Ruth Copeland and Clive Davis. Additional guests include those closest to Sly, including his band members Jerry Martini, Greg Errico, Larry Graham and Cynthia Robinson and family Sylvette Phunne Robinson, Novena Carmel and Sylvester Stewart Jr., who offer the best insights into Sly’s life by sharing anecdotes from their time together.
The film hails from MRC, Network Entertainment Inc., Two One Five Entertainment Inc., RadicalMedia, Stardust Films LLC and ID8 Multimedia, Inc., in association with Sony Music Entertainment. It is produced by Joseph Patel and Derik Murray (Network Entertainment Inc.) and directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Two One Five Entertainment Inc.). Executive producers are Amit Dey, Brian Gersh (Network Entertainment Inc.), Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Two One Five Entertainment Inc.), Shawn Gee (Two One Five Entertainment Inc.), Zarah Zohlman (Two One Five Entertainment Inc.), Common (Stardust Films LLC), Derek Dudley (ID8 Multimedia, Inc.), Shelby Stone (ID8 Multimedia, Inc.), Ron Weisner, Paul Gertz (Network Entertainment Inc.), Kent Wingerak (Network Entertainment Inc.), Ali Pejman (Network Entertainment Inc.), Jon Kamen (RadicalMedia) and Dave Sirulnick (RadicalMedia).
The documentary starts streaming today and you can view the trailer above. Questlove of The Roots was also recently featured in an HBO documentary about the easy-listening pop genre that is now called “Yacht Rock.” That documentary, Music Box: Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary, can now be streamed on Max.
Originally published at https://www.joblo.com/sly-the-family-stone-documentary/
