We Want the Funk!

WE WANT THE FUNK! is a syncopated voyage through the history of funk music, spanning from African, soul, and early jazz roots to its rise into the public consciousness. Featuring James Brown’s dynamism, the extraterrestrial funk of George Clinton’s Parliament Funkadelic, transformed girl group Labelle, and Fela Kuti’s Afrobeat, the story also traces funk’s influences on both new wave and hip-hop.

Screening on April 12 will be followed by a Q&A with attending filmmakers and the following guests:

• Stanley Nelson – Director and award-winning filmmaker, RiverRun’s 2015 Master of Cinema recipient

• Mark Anthony Neal — James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African & African American Studies and Chair of the Department of African & African American Studies at Duke University

• Sonny Miles — Winston-Salem native, multi-instrumentalist and performer; one of Obama’s fav picks in 2019

This film is screening in person only.

Sponsored by

Co-Sponsored by

Wanda Starke & Ron Fisher