“A BROKEN RECORD”- A FILM BY JEVON JORDAN MCKINNEY
June 2021-Present
Have you ever danced the night away to the sound of "My Girl" by the Temptations? Listened to the lyrics of 2Pac and Biggie Smalls or gotten down to the rhythms of Ms. Mary J. Blige or Megan Thee Stallion? The truth is that there are so many Black artists whose impact on the music industry has been profound. However, those are considered the top 0.01% of all Black artists. How many of these Black Artists have actually been given the right amount of recognition for their work? Have the messages of equality and activism filled in their music fallen on deaf ears? Have these artists really gotten the respect they deserve from the music industry and society as a whole? All of this will be investigated in “A Broken Record.” It explores the censorship, appropriation, and overall treatment of Black Musicians in our society. By exploring the traces of Black artists in the roots of music history with local Colorado artists and educators such as University of Denver Professor Roger Holland, Singers Kid Astronaut & Json Martin, and national saxophonist and radio host Tony Exum Jr., to get their perspectives on the state of Black Music as well as the history of its themes and mistreatment. In this award-winning film, I direct a crew with camera, lighting, and sound in order to create a film that I hope will contribute to the long-needed discussion about giving Black artists the recognition they deserve.
A Broken Record has won various awards including the Colorado Short Circuit Film Festival Young Filmmaker Award, The Best In Visual Art at Celebrating Undergraduate Research and Creativity (CURC) Symposium, and aired as an Official Selection at The All-American High School Film Festival in Times Square, New York City.
"A Broken Record" will air on PBS' show "Our Time" nationally in the future.