Songs of Black Folk
Leading Black musicians come together for a groundbreaking Juneteenth concert in the Pacific Northwest, creating a historic moment that paves the way for future generations of Black artists. Directed by Justin Emeka and Haley Watson. Co-presented with POV.
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Co-director Justin Emeka:
“Through all the sorrow of the Sorrow Songs there breathes a hope—a faith in the ultimate justice of things. ” — W.E.B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk
Hope lives in sound. It lives in memory. And in “Songs of Black Folk,” it lives in the music that carries us through grief, through resistance, through the long, unfinished journey toward freedom.
The spark for this film came from Rev. Leslie Braxton, a preacher and theologian whose vision was to honor the legacy of Juneteenth by celebrating the spiritual resilience of Black music. His nephew, Ramon Braxton-Bryant, a composer and conductor, gave shape to that vision, orchestrating an expansive musical work for the stage at the Paramount Theater in Seattle – even while caring for his grandmother in her final days.
The concert became more than music; it became a love song across generations. This film captures an extraordinary convergence of community, faith, music, memory, and farewell.
My co-director Haley Watson and I felt it was urgent to tell this story because we are living in a time of extraordinary erasure. Although Juneteenth is now a national holiday, its meaning and stories are under attack — reduced, rebranded, or banned altogether from classrooms, schools and universities. “Songs of Black Folk” reflects the legacy of creative resistance to that erasure.
This film reminds us that Juneteenth is not just a date. It is a doorway into the past. A ritual of remembrance. A sacred threshold that allows us to confront the past and honor the legacy of freedom that lives in us all still today. Even as some try to silence the song, we still sing. We still dance. We still remember. In our music we are forever free.
Co-presented with POV.
“Through all the sorrow of the Sorrow Songs there breathes a hope—a faith in the ultimate justice of things. ” — W.E.B. Du Bois, The Souls of Black Folk
Hope lives in sound. It lives in memory. And in “Songs of Black Folk,” it lives in the music that carries us through grief, through resistance, through the long, unfinished journey toward freedom.
The spark for this film came from Rev. Leslie Braxton, a preacher and theologian whose vision was to honor the legacy of Juneteenth by celebrating the spiritual resilience of Black music. His nephew, Ramon Braxton-Bryant, a composer and conductor, gave shape to that vision, orchestrating an expansive musical work for the stage at the Paramount Theater in Seattle – even while caring for his grandmother in her final days.
The concert became more than music; it became a love song across generations. This film captures an extraordinary convergence of community, faith, music, memory, and farewell.
My co-director Haley Watson and I felt it was urgent to tell this story because we are living in a time of extraordinary erasure. Although Juneteenth is now a national holiday, its meaning and stories are under attack — reduced, rebranded, or banned altogether from classrooms, schools and universities. “Songs of Black Folk” reflects the legacy of creative resistance to that erasure.
This film reminds us that Juneteenth is not just a date. It is a doorway into the past. A ritual of remembrance. A sacred threshold that allows us to confront the past and honor the legacy of freedom that lives in us all still today. Even as some try to silence the song, we still sing. We still dance. We still remember. In our music we are forever free.
Co-presented with POV.