Paid in Full: The Battle for Black Music

Paid in Full: The Battle for Black Music is a Canadian television documentary series, which premiered on CBC Television and CBC Gem in 2024.[1] The three-part series profiles the history of racial injustice in the music industry, that has left many Black musicians exploited and underpaid for their work.[2]

Figures whose stories are explored in the series include Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Bessie Smith, Chaka Khan, George Clinton, Monie Love, Nile Rodgers, Gloria Gaynor, Ice-T, Smokey Robinson, TLC and Cadence Weapon.[1]

In Canada the series premiered on CBC Gem in September 2024 before being broadcast on the main CBC Television network in October,[1] while in the United Kingdom it aired on BBC Two in September before being added to the BBC iPlayer streaming service.[2] The Canadian broadcast was narrated by singer and broadcaster Jully Black, while the British broadcast was narrated by actress Zawe Ashton.[3]

The series won the Canadian Screen Award for Best History Documentary Program or Series at the 13th Canadian Screen Awards in 2025.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c "Black artists have been exploited for decades. A new series explores the fight for fair pay in music". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, September 21, 2024.
  2. ^ a b Ellen E. Jones, "Paid in Full: The Battle for Black Music review – the racism that’s seen artists brutally ripped off for 100 years". The Guardian, September 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "New docuseries Paid in Full: The Battle for Black Music explores the history of racial injustice in the music industry". BBC, September 4, 2024.
  4. ^ Jamie Casemore, "CSAs ’25: Tragically Hip docuseries leads unscripted winners". Playback, May 30, 2025.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.