Questlove’s ‘Burden Of Black Genius’ Doc About Sly & The Family Stone Hits Hulu In February

Oscar-winning filmmaker Ahmir ‘Questlove’ Thompsonn really having a moment and cooking with a lot of cinema at the moment. Thompson, one of the leaders of the hip-hop band The Roots and an Oscar winner for best documentary for the music doctor, “summer of soul,” has a lot on the way. Yesterday, it was announced that Thompson would direct a “Saturday Night Live“music documentary for NBC – titled “Ladies and gentlemen… 50 years of SNL music,” about all the iconic musical guests and performances that have taken place on the show over the years and today production company Onyx Collective announced a first look and release date for his upcoming documentary, “END LIFE! (aka The Burden of Black Genius).”

About musical but notoriously troubled genius sly stone, the leader of the pioneering funk and soul 1970s band Sly and the family stonethe doctor “Sluve lives!” premieres on Thursday 13 February Hulu.

Guests in the document include Andre 3000, D’Angelo, Chaka Khan, Q-Tip, Nile Rogers, Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis, George Clinton, Ruth Copeland and Clive Davis.

Additional guests include those closest to Sly, including his band members Jerry Martini, Greg Errico, Larry Graham and Cynthia Robinson and family Sylvette Phunne Robinson, Novena Carmel and Sylvester Stewart Jr., that provides the best insight into Sly’s life by sharing anecdotes from their time together.

Saying, Sly Stone, aka Sylvester Stewart, is not listed as an included in the documentary, which makes sense if you know his reputation as a giant recluse. Stone’s last public interview was included Vanity Fair in 2007after an already violent 25-year absence from public life.

Sly And The Family Stone were legendary and deeply influential, but were a notoriously troubled band, their leader hyper eccentric, and when they burst onto the scene with their debut album in 1969, they pretty much packed it all in ten years later (there’s a final). record in 1982, a collaboration between Sly and George Clinton and Funkadelic, but it was abandoned by all parties and thereafter Warner Bros. assigned to a producer to save it).

Here’s the official synopsis:

“SLEEP LIFE! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)” examines the life and legacy of Sly & The Family Stone, the seminal band led by the charismatic and enigmatic Sly Stone. The film captures the band’s rise, reign and subsequent fadeout while shedding light on the unseen burden , following the success of black artists in America.

The film comes from MRC, Network Entertainment Inc., Two One Five Entertainment Inc., RadicalMedia, Stardust Films LLC and ID8 Multimedia, Inc., in association with Sony Music Entertainment. The film is produced by Joseph Patel and Derik Murray (Network Entertainment Inc.) and directed by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson (Two One Five Entertainment Inc.).

As previously announced, “SWALKING LIVER! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)” has been officially selected to debut its world premiere on Sundance Film Festival 2025.

“SLEEP LIFE! (aka The Burden of Black Genius)” premieres Thursday, February 13 on Hulu. Watch the first teaser below.