Alex Gibney on James Brown: Making Mr. Dynamite from Peabody Awards on Vimeo.
The 1960s brought The Beatles and The Rolling Stones to the United States, and rock ‘n’ roll surged in popularity on AM radio and American television. But even more culturally important than the British Invasion was the role homegrown music played in crossing race barriers, serving as an expression platform for the Civil Rights Movement. No one man more fully personified this transitional period of culture, music, dance, performance and showmanship than James Brown.
Mr. Dynamite: The Rise of James Brown follows the soul legend from birth through his lasting legacy. Not only did he revolutionize music by creating three new genres, Brown also played a major role in the Civil Rights Movement. “What he hadn’t really reckoned with or properly understood,” Alex Gibney said, “is how he was very much a part of the Civil Rights and Black Power movement in a way that was really transformative because he could speak to a mass audience in a way that so many people couldn’t.”