Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr.’s ‘Gospel’ Is a Celebratory Account of the Faith-Based Music’s History: TV Review
variety.comAramide Tinubu A companion series to the 2021 docuseries, “The Black Church,” and executive produced and narrated by Dr. Henry Louis Gates Jr., directors Stacey L.
Holman and Shayla Harris’ latest docuseries, “Gospel,” is a historical account of the musical genre. Gospel is an innovative and ever-evolving musicality born out of traditional spirituals, jazz and the blues that has been a continued throughline in the Black experience, especially in the Black Christian community.
Intricate and extensive, “Gospel” contains a wealth of information, celebratory moments and ideas that eloquently connect the present to the past. “Gospel,” like all of Gates’ shows, including “Making Black America: Through the Grapevine” and “Reconstruction: America After the Civil War,” opens with an origin story.
The beginnings of gospel can be traced to the specific cadence and tones of Black preaching. Since enslavement, Black people have had a profound and nuanced connection to Christianity, but gospel, in particular, was born at the top of the 20th century amid the First Great Migration.
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