Brown & Black

Paul Thomas Anderson's One Battle After Another got the casting right, but did it get Latinos and Blacks right? People are still talking about the film One Battle After Another. We breakdown how Paul Thomas Anderson's new movie handles Black and Latino characters in Hollywood. With Teyana Taylor, Benicio del Toro, and Chase Infinity starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, we ask: do these characters...

This week on Brown & Black, we drop an Off the Cuff episode on the breaking news that Bad Bunny will headline the Super Bowl halftime show. This marks the first-ever Spanish-language halftime show on America's biggest stage. We break down why this moment matters for Latino and Black culture, how it exposes the NFL's contradictions on race and protest, and what it reveals about the league's global...

Many white Americans face a contradiction: they love Black and Latino culture, but don't like Black and Latino people. Dr. Barnor Hesse of Northwestern University calls this "White Voyeurism." It's part of his Eight White Identities framework that explains Jennifer Welch's viral rant against MAGA hypocrisy. We revisit Hesse's revolutionary framework to show how whiteness has consumed Black and Lat...

Did you know The Underground Railroad went South and America spent 200 years hiding it? In this episode, we talk to Nygel Robinson and Brian Quijada, creators of the Off-Broadway musical MEXODUS , which reveals how 10,000 enslaved people escaped to Mexico between 1829-1865. This history of Black and Latino solidarity has never been brought to the stage, until now. We discuss why this musical is an...

Spike Lee and Denzel Washington, two of Hollywood's biggest stars, reunite for A24's  Highest 2 Lowest (in theaters August 15). But you wouldn't know it from the marketing. Its low-profile rollout has people asking: is this racism or just business? And will the burden of promoting the film fall once again on Black moviegoers? Episode Summary: • Is undermarketing Black films racism or just business...

How can the Latino star of Disney's Andor , the best-reviewed show in the Star Wars franchise, be snubbed by the Emmys?  In this episode, we pull back the curtain on how the voting process really works from the inside. We're also asking some hard questions: Why are Latinos showing up in record numbers, yet the nomination process doesn't reward them? What does the Diego Luna snub say to Latinos whe...

This July weekend, we review two of the biggest summer movies of 2025:  Jurassic World: Rebirth and The Materialists .  Mike breaks down why Jurassic World is stuck in a loop of reboots and clichés, even with big stars like Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali. And what would it take to save this franchise? Then Jack reviews The Materialists , a romantic drama exploring love, class, and status in...

In this episode, we welcome Nyasha Hatendi , the creator, writer, director, and producer of Audible's new audio horror drama, Sacrilege: Curse of the Mbirwi . He opens up about his motivations for creating Sacrilege, the influences behind its horror, his collaboration with actor Caleb McLaughlin from Stranger Things , and how truth and story have the power to bring people together. Episode Summary...

In this special sponsored episode, we're partnering with Audible for our first-ever audio drama analysis, breaking down the groundbreaking supernatural thriller " Sacrilege: Curse of the Mbirwi " starring Caleb McLaughlin from Stranger Things . Created by Zimbabwean-American filmmaker Nyasha Hatendi, this six-episode supernatural horror audio drama follows an African-American family from Detroit w...

This week we deconstruct Ryan Coogler's SINNERS from a Latino and Black perspective. It's a film that is creating deep cultural conversations about Black originality and the business of Black culture globally. We explore its cultural symbolism, audience reactions, Variety's media bias, and the troubling Asian release rollout that may hint at anti-Black bias in Asian markets. Episode Summary (2:00)...

If AI can make human-like art, do we still need the artist? In this episode we unpack the OpenAI's 'Image Editor' and the Studio Ghibli AI trend, and discuss the cultural, economic, and existential implications AI poses to Black and Latino artists. Episode Summary: AI Art: Speed & Quality Enjoying vs. Fearing AI Art Copyright Crisis Is the Artist's Career in Peril? Audience Over Artists?  Art vs....

In Opus , Ayo Edebiri plays a journalist invited into a world of celebrity power, but is she there to observe, or be consumed by it? This week on Brown & Black, journalist and filmmaker Mark Anthony Green joins us to unpack his A24 directorial debut, Opus . We dissect the film's underlying themes, including the seductive power of validation, the blurred lines between journalism and celebrity, and...

Is Donald Trump's Kennedy Center takeover the start of a cultural whitewash? This week on 'Brown & Black,' we examine w hat happens when the most powerful man in America seizes control of the nation's most prestigious cultural institution. The President's takeover of the Kennedy Center has sparked fears of a whitewashing of African-American and Latino culture. From shrinking opportunities for arti...

How do you make a America whiter without saying you're making it whiter? In this first episode of 2025, during Black History Month, we dissect what does Trump's dismatling of DEI and the self-sabotaging deportation crusade, mean or businesses and media? And how much damage will be done to Blacks and Latinos before they get their way? Then we discuss why the backlash to the 13-time Oscar-nominated...

In this special Thanksgiving episode, we're sharing some of our favorite movies and TV shows we're currently watching or bingeing. Hopefully, you'll find something to add to your Thanksgiving watchlist.   From Black documentaries on 70s cinema and military-style action TV shows to a surreal film tackling female ageism, we've included a mix of Latino, Black, and mainstream selections that we enjoye...

It's November 7, 2024. Latinos are clearly becoming the next 'whites' and represent what the Republican Party may look like in the future. This episode promises to challenge everything you thought you knew about Latino identity in the U.S.   Back in April 2024, we spoke to Political Psychologist Efren Perez, a UCLA Professor of Political Science and Psychology, who holds a PhD from Duke University...

What does responsible AI use look like in the music world?    This week, we sit down with Grammy CEO Harvey Mason Jr., the man at the helm of one of music's most revered institutions, to discuss AI's current and future impact on the music industry - especially for creators of color - and how the Recording Academy is confronting this challenge head-on. Harvey reveals what's at stake: artist rights,...

Land, land, land. What if your ancestors kept the land they were promised? How would your life be different?    In this episode, we speak with Mother Jones Editorial Director, Jamilah King, about a story meant to be hidden in the annals of history. She and her investigative team used AI to unearth evidence that could force the nation into a reckoning with reparations and finally confront its burie...

What happens when a pandemic exposes the realities that wealth and privilege usually hide?   Author Regina Porter stops by our show to discuss her provocative new novel, "The Rich People Have Gone Away," a title that says it all. It's a book with sharp social commentary where characters are forced to confront their own moral complexities about privilege, race, and class, set against the backdrop o...

With the recent announcement of WB's "La Bamba" remake, we ask: Did Hollywood whitewash Luis Valdez's 1987 film classic, and will the remake do better? And how much of your identity would you sacrifice to be seen by mainstream media?   In this raw and unfiltered episode of Brown & Black, we use the announcement of the "La Bamba" remake to discuss identity, assimilation, and the paradox of Latino r...

In this episode, we explore how pop culture and social media are driving Kamala Harris's potential presidential election and how her multicultural background (Black and Indian) is challenging the power structures in American politics.   We also examine the new lawsuit involving Flamin' Hot Cheetos creator Richard Montañez and PepsiCo for defamation as he fights for recognition as the product's cre...

Kimberly Bryant, the founder of "Black Girls Code" and the "Black Innovation Lab," joins us for a can't-miss conversation about the real threat AI poses to people of color if we don't wake up now. This episode is a wake-up call. We dissect the implications of the recent news headlines involving FKA Twigs and the misuse of Tupac's voice by Drake. Plus, how to design laws, ethics, that will not allo...

Has white privilege sabotaged Beyoncé? In this episode, we analyze the recent revelation how AMC's CEO undermined Beyoncé's Renaissance concert film, costing her millions, while protecting Taylor Swift's release. Was this decision based on business or unconscious bias? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Should race and ethnicity be combined in the next Census? In this episode, we discuss the Census Bureau's recent announcement of their proposed changes to the race and ethnicity categories, particularly for Hispanics. What potential risks will that on the Afro-Latino community? Will 2030 see Hispanic/Latinos in the United States be pressured to conform to White or will they double down on Latino i...

Are Latinos becoming the next whites, and what role does politics play in this ideological shift? We talk to Political psychologist Efren Perez, a UCLA Professor of Political Science and Psychology, who holds a PhD from Duke University. His research focuses on race, ethnicity, politics, and society. He recently wrote an article in Newsweek titled "Why the Politics of Republican Latinos Suggests Th...