Pharrell Williams And Kenya Barris Are Producing A Juneteenth Musical For Netflix
Kenya Barris (Black-ish, BlackAF) and Pharrell Williams are reportedly in talks with Netflix to develop a feature-length musical about Juneteenth.
According to Deadline, the pair are in the early stages of working on a plan for the project. And while the details are sparse at the moment, sources say it is a separate project to the live musical they announced in 2018.
Williams is slated to produce the project alongside his producing partner Mimi Valdes, in collaboration with Barris. They will all be working through Barris’ production company Khalabo Ink Society.
This isn’t the only Juneteenth-related measure Pharrell’s been working on as of late. He just returned home from his home state of Virginia, where he announced, along with Governor Ralph Northam, that Juneteenth will be recognized as a paid state holiday for the first time in Virginia’s history.
Williams says that the move was a chance for business and government to “stand in solidarity with their African American brothers and sisters.”
“This year, Juneteenth will look like no other Juneteenth before it,” he added.
Juneteenth commemorates the day that enslaved Black people in Texas finally learned of the end of slavery, which was signed into law via the Emancipation Proclamation two years prior. On June 19, 1965, General Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas to announce the news.
