Juneteenth 2023: Black Artists Who Deserve Entertainment Reparations

So you had Dreamgirls nominated for Best Musical, but you decided to go with Nine instead? This is a case where the Broadway League gave Jennifer Holliday the award for Lead Actress in a Musical and figured they were done. I ask you, which show has stood the test of time more?

Eleven! That’s how many Oscars The Color Purple was nominated for. Zero! That’s how many it won. The Best Picture that year was Out of Africa, an extremely long, slow paced romantic drama starring Meryl Streep and Robert Redford. When was the last time someone started randomly quoting lines from Out of Africa to you?

Hey kids, do you remember the pop group Fine Young Cannibals and their endlessly played hit “She Drives Me Crazy?” Now, do you remember Janet’s classic Rhythm Nation? It not only featured the hit title track, but also “Miss You Much;” “Escapade;” and “Alright.” Guess which one was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys? Really!?

Al Pacino is obviously one of the greatest actors of all-time. If the Academy wanted to honor him, they could have chosen any of his numerous memorable roles to reward. But even he would have to admit that Denzel Washington as Malcolm X is one of the best performances in the history of moving pictures. Come on, Scent of a Woman over Malcolm X!?

A soundtrack has never matched a movie better than Waiting to Exhale. This group of amazing artists put together a classic album that goes through every emotion involved in moving through the world as a Black woman, and it’s unfathomable that it lost Album of the Year to Celine Dion’s Falling Into You. By the way, The Fugees’ The Score was also nominated that year.

Thank goodness S. Epatha Merkerson won for Lead Actress in a Miniseries or Movie. However, the film didn’t win because the Television Academy couldn’t possibly not give the trophy to yet another star-studded drama about Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt.

How in the name of Omar was The Wire never nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series!? In 2006 that honor went to Lost, which in hindsight seems extremely troubling.

Come on guys, Jersey Boys? How many times does this property have to be snubbed for some mediocre piece of fluff?

Here’s the thing: Three different songs from Dreamgirls were nominated for Best Original Song. This likely split the vote, paving the way for Melissa Etheride’s “I Need to Wake Up” from An Inconvenient Truth to win. “Listen” was obviously the best choice, so this one still feels wrong.

Sometimes Hollywood just falls in love with a movie and trips all over itself throwing awards at it. This is what happened with Crazy Heart. It would’ve been really nice to see the spectacular music of Randy Newman and the flawless vocals of Anika Noni Rose recognized for bringing the game-changing Princess Tiana to life.

Even Adele—who won Album of the Year for 25—knew Queen Bey’s Lemonade was an unparalleled classic.

Green Book? That’s what the Academy chose as Best Picture over the groundbreaking, history making work of art Black Panther. It’s like they thought they were doing something by choosing it, but completely missed the mark.

How in the world did Beyoncé make another instant classic, then somehow lose Album of the Year to yet another British pop star?

Our Queen gave us everything in this performance and yet she still did not get her well-deserved flowers from the Motion Picture Academy. You just know they’re going to eventually give her a career achievement Oscar for a less important role.