Director Lisa Cortés talked to Jezebel about her effort to 'decolonize the rock doc' and emphasize 'human connection' with her subject.
is in conversation with past portraits of the artist. In particular, Richard’sis a focal point, from his history with drag , to the wild orgies behind the scenes of the Chitlin’ Circuit, to his renouncing of his libidinous past and turning to gospel music after spotting what he described as a fireball outside his window on a flight .
“Lady Java is the friend who actually speaks to this period of queerness that Richard never [discussed]. He wasn’t out then,” said Cortés. “When Richard goes, ‘Oh, yeah, I was one of the first gay people I know,’ he never declared himself. But Lady Java attests to that part of his journey.
“What was important for me is that this not be a documentary that’s about hagiography. It’d be very easy to go, ‘He’s the first to do this. He’s the first to do that. Isn’t it great?’” said Cortés. “I gave him the mic. I let him tell his story, even if I personally disagree with things that he said. But that’s what he said. That was his truth.
“I love Zandria’s comment about how it’s really obliteration that is the greater injustice,” said Cortés. “As someone who is a Black cultural worker, I’m especially sensitive to the value of what I create, and when made to feel invisible, how painful that can be, and how that obliteration of your work is destructive on so many levels.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Little Richard: I Am Everything review: rock icon gets his dueDirector Lisa Cortes overdoes the stylistic flourishes in an otherwise stellar doc about a performer whose flamboyant stage presence made him a trailblazer.
Read more »
Honoring the Musical Genius and Transgressive Power of Little Richard'Little Richard: I Am Everything,' a documentary on the life of the rock and roll icon, opens this Friday. We talked to director Lisa Cortés about Richard’s relevance today, as both a musical rebel and a transgressive superstar.
Read more »
Little Richard: The Riveting Showmanship and Tortured Sexuality That Built Rock and RollLittle Richard was an artist who looked and sounded like nothing that had come before—a whirlwind of showmanship, blessed with untamable wildness, and one of the greatest voices in pop history.
Read more »
Fox News' big Dominion payout saves them from public scrutinyA lawyer for Dominion Voting Systems said on Tuesday that the settlement was for over $700 million.
Read more »