Quibi Announces Documentary Series ‘Black Equals Beauty’ From Queen Latifah

Four-Part Series Uncovers How Black Women Have Shifted American Culture

Produced by Flavor Unit Entertainment, All3 Media’s Relevé Entertainment, Lionsgate and Elevated Films

Quibi announced ‘BLACK EQUALS BEAUTY,’ a four-part documentary series executive produced by Queen Latifah, Shakim Compere, Holly Carter, and Cassian Elwes (‘Mudbound,’ ‘The Butler’), and Directed by Nneka Onuorah. This series takes a kaleidoscopic approach into how Black women in America have used inventiveness to flip oppressive archetypes through their style, beauty, and behavior. With each episode focusing on a different archetype, ‘BLACK EQUALS BEAUTY’ will allow audiences to uncover how Black women, either by defining or rejecting these archetypes, have shifted and impacted American culture.

“There has never been a more important time to explore and elevate Black women’s contributions to American culture,” said Holly Carter, founder and CEO of Relevé Entertainment. “We are honored to work with Nneka Onuorah to spotlight how Black beauty has inspired our culture throughout history through the perspectives of celebrities, trendsetters and everyday people. I’m committed to telling stories that elevate our voice.”

“We’re proud to collaborate with the iconic Queen Latifah and the incredible Nneka Onuorah on a documentary series that is as enjoyable as it is empowering and timely,” said Lionsgate SVP and Head of Unscripted Programming Alice Dickens-Koblin. “Together with our amazing producing partners, we’re bringing Quibi audiences a series that resonates and examines the impact Black women have on American culture in such a powerful and beautiful way.”

The series comes from Flavor Unit Entertainment, Relevé Entertainment, Lionsgate, and Elevated Films, and re-teams executive producers Queen Latifah, Shakim Compere and Holly Carter following the success of “The Clark Sisters: First Ladies of Gospel” for Lifetime.

Nneka is represented by WME, Jordan Cerf at Mosaic, and Victoria Cook at Frankfurt Kurnit.

Directed by: Nneka Onuorah

Executive Producers: Queen Latifah, Shakim Compere, Holly Carter, Phillip Bloch, Cassian Elwes

Produced by: Flavor Unit Entertainment, Relevé Entertainment, Lionsgate, Elevated Films

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About Nneka Onuorah

Nneka Onuorah is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, television producer, and activist of Nigerian-American descent. Currently in post-production on a documentary feature commissioned by HBO about the Nigerian underground non-conformist resistance formed in response to the country’s outlawing of homosexuality, she is best known for her debut feature, The Same Difference, a documentary about internalized homophobia within the US black lesbian community. The film was nominated for a GLAAD award in the category of “Best Documentary.” Other credits include field producer on the Netflix original docu-series First and Last, about inmates’ intake and release from the prison system and My House, a documentary-series about the black queer vogue scene for Viceland. Most recently she worked along side Oscar nominated director Dee Rees and Oscar winning producer Cassian Elwes on The Last Thing He Wanted, which premiered at Sundance 2020 and was released by Netflix.

Nneka has a continued commitment to giving a voice to the voiceless through her work on the “Black Girls Rock” awards and her “We are All Women Campaign,” a global visibility campaign dedicated to improving equitable healthcare and housing for lesbian women.

About Relevé Entertainment, an All3Media America Company:

Founded by Dr. Holly Carter, Relevé Entertainment is a multi-faceted entertainment company specializing in talent partnerships, brand development and television/film production delivering high-quality, breakthrough family and faith-inspired programming. Consistently engaging national audiences, production credits include: Love & Listings S1 & S2 (VH1), The Next Big Thing (BET), Chad Loves Michelle (OWN), My Father’s Daughter (Lifetime), The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel (Lifetime), Fix My Choir (Oxygen), The Sheards (BET), The Sheffields (FYI) and the groundbreaking, Oxygen franchise Preachers of LA, Detroit and Atlanta. Earlier this year, Carter received significant kudos for the Lifetime original movie she executive produced, The Clarks Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel, which garnered the network it’s highest ratings in more than four years. Recently, Carter announced “Mahalia” a feature film she is producing with Jamie Foxx and Queen Latifah, that stars Jill Scott, Based on gospel legend and activist Mahalia Jackson. Carter is also developing an inspiration music competition series for Amazon, two unscripted projects in the faith-based space for Lifetime and a holiday music franchise for OWN. Carter also developed the television and theatrical career of multi-platform superstar Usher. Relevé’s client partnership roster includes GRAMMY award-winners Michelle Williams, Kierra Sheard and duo Mary Mary,15-time GRAMMY winner Kirk Franklin, and celebrity hair stylist Kim Kimble. Relevé’s brand partnerships include AT&T, AHF, Walgreens and Honda. Relevé Entertainment’s core areas of operation include Television & Film, Client Partnerships, and Community Engagement Initiatives, such as The ASCEND Bible Movement, Freedom of Spirit Homeless Outreach and The Merge Summit

About Flavor Unit Entertainment

Flavor Unit Entertainment is a production and talent management company founded by Queen Latifah and Shakim Compere in 1990. Flavor Unit won an Emmy for Outstanding TV Movie for their original film Bessie which they co-produced with HBO. The film also garnered 12 Emmy nominations, SAG and Golden Globe nominations. Flavor Unit began by executive producing Disney’s box office # 1 hit Bringing Down the House and then continued with Beauty Shop for MGM and The Perfect Holiday for Paramount. On the small screen, Flavor Unit executive produced several series such as The Rap Game, From the Bottom Up, and most recently, Lifetime’s highly anticipated biopic, The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel. In audio, Flavor Unit has a growing partnership with Audible for narrative storytelling on that platform.

About Elevated Films

Elevated Films is a Los Angeles based film and television production company, founded by leading independent producer Cassian Elwes. The company is best known for the Oscar-nominated Mudbound, directed by Dee Rees and Lee Daniels’ The Butler.

About Lionsgate

Combining the STARZ premium global subscription platform with world-class motion picture and television studio operations, Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) brings a unique and varied portfolio of entertainment to consumers around the world. Its film, television, subscription and location-based entertainment businesses are backed by a 17,000-title library and the largest collection of film and television franchises in the independent media space. A digital age company driven by its entrepreneurial culture and commitment to innovation, the Lionsgate brand is synonymous with bold, original, relatable entertainment for the audiences it serves worldwide.

About Quibi

Quibi is a mobile-first media technology platform bringing together the best of Silicon Valley and Hollywood. Headquartered in Los Angeles, Quibi is the first entertainment platform built for easy, on-the-go mobile viewing, allowing today’s leading studios and creative talent to tell original stories in an entirely new way. For more information visit www.quibi.com. Follow Quibi on Facebook @QuibiUS and on Twitter @Quibi.

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About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.