Kathia Woods
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Articles by Kathia Woods
A Nation of Artists’ exhibition answers: what is (Black) American art history?
By Kathia Woods The Philadelphia Tribune https://www.phillytrib.com/ “Portrait of James Baldwin” by Beauford Delaney on display at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Photos courtesy Philadelphia Museum of Art For nearly 150 years, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has quietly practiced something many institutions are only now catching up to: telling American art history as one story, not several segregated ones.
'A Nation of Artists' exhibition answers: what is (Black) American art history?
For nearly 150 years, the Philadelphia Museum of Art has quietly practiced something many institutions are only now catching up to: telling American art history as one story, not several segregated ones. That philosophy is on full display in “A Nation of Artists,” the museum’s sweeping reinstallation of its American galleries and part of a collaboration with the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. In a recent conversation, curators Alexandra Kirtley (decorative arts) and Kathleen A.
Filmmaker Louis Massiah measures film's success by audiences impact
Last month, the Uptown Theater’s marquee lit up again. Not with a headliner’s name. With North Philadelphia’s own faces, oral histories from the neighborhood are thrown across the shuttered marquee by a laser projector, with chairs and speakers set up on the far side of Broad Street. Buses rolled past. People came out of their houses and sat down. “It really made me feel proud,” Louis Massiah recalls hearing from residents who live across the street.
'The Philadelphia Sensei' highlights a local musical icon in BlackStar world premiere
For decades, Lovett Hines has been one of Philadelphia's best-kept secrets, a jazz educator whose fingerprints are all over the city's music scene, even as his name rarely makes the marquee.
Ravi Coltrane honors father's musical legacy with 'Coltrane 100'
Before John Coltrane belonged to the world, he belonged to Philadelphia. The saxophonist arrived from High Point, North Carolina, as a teenager and bought his first home at in Strawberry Mansion in 1952. He went on to sharpen the sound that would remake American music in this city’s clubs, classrooms, and rowhouses. On Wednesday, the year he would have turned 100, the world reciprocates.
Sheryl Underwood returns to her comedic roots at Helium Club
From smoky comedy clubs to 12 seasons behind the desk of CBS's "The Talk," Sheryl Underwood has spent more than three decades making America laugh. This week, Philadelphia gets the version of her that started it all. The Emmy-winning comedian brings her I Need A Job tour to the Helium Comedy Club for a two-night show Tuesday and Wednesday. The timing could hardly be better.
Tahiirah Habibi brings the wine world to Philly's festival scene
Before Tahiirah Habibi ever poured a glass for anyone else, she noticed who wasn't at the table. The Philadelphia-born sommelier built her career in fine dining rooms including J&G Grill at the St. Regis Bal Harbour where she was often the only person of color on either side of the bottle. Rather than accept that as the cost of entry, she rewrote the invitation.
15 years of BlackStar: Philly film festival celebrates milestone year with world premiere
For 15 years, the BlackStar Film Festival has proven that Philadelphia doesn't need to look to Park City or the Croisette to find cinema that matters. When the festival returns Aug. 6–9 to venues along Broad Street — the Kimmel Center, the Wilma Theater, and the Suzanne Roberts Theatre — it will do so with 91 films from more than 30 countries. However, the core essence of this milestone edition is undeniably local. "I've never done anything this long in my life.
The Dell continues summer tradition with Essence of Entertainment series
For Philadelphians who watched clips from New Orleans's Ernest N. Morial Convention Center over Fourth of July weekend and wished they had been inside Essence Festival, the city has its own version much closer to home in Strawberry Mansion. For generations of Black Philadelphians, the Dell Music Center has served as a summer gathering place for R&B, soul, gospel and jazz.
Patti LaBelle returns to Essence Festival of Culture
Patti LaBelle's performance at the Caesars Superdome on July 4 will not only be a concert but also a long-awaited homecoming. LaBelle returns to 'Essence Festival of Culture 2026' after previously gracing the event during several editions, including the very first festival in 1995, when the magazine first turned its 25th anniversary into a live celebration of Black music and culture.
African restaurants in Philadelphia make the World Cup local
One doesn't need a ticket to Lincoln Financial Field to experience the World Cup in Philadelphia this summer. You just need an appetite. Across the city, small, independently owned restaurants are turning soccer's biggest stage into a reason to spotlight cuisines that don't always get the marquee treatment, and for African and South American nations especially, the tournament has become an open invitation to celebrate culture through the kitchen, not just the scoreboard.
African restaurants make the World Cup local
One doesn't need a ticket to Lincoln Financial Field to experience the World Cup in Philadelphia this summer. You just need an appetite. Across the city, small, independently owned restaurants are turning soccer's biggest stage into a reason to spotlight cuisines that don't always get the marquee treatment, and for African and South American nations especially, the tournament has become an open invitation to celebrate culture through the kitchen, not just the scoreboard.
Philadelphia Union hosting Ivory Coast watch party on Tuesday
Tuesday is your chance to experience Union Yards if you haven’t made it there during this World Cup summer. If the electric atmosphere from the group stage is any indication, fans are in for another memorable afternoon as the Philadelphia Union hosts a free watch party for Côte d’Ivoire’s Round of 32 showdown against Norway.
Philadelphia screenwriter goes from film to puzzles
Michael Elliot is an award-winning screenwriter and film industry veteran who has spent over 25 years crafting some of modern cinema's most beloved stories. A Philadelphia native, Elliot’s creative journey began in the music industry, where he published 'Krush Magazine' the first publication dedicated exclusively to hip-hop and launched the syndicated music program Krush Rap. Elliot is also an accomplished screenwriter, having written the hit films Brown Sugar, Like Mike, and Just Wright.
Celebrating culture, heritage, freedom: Johnson House hosts 20th annual Juneteenth Festival
On the 6300 block of Germantown Avenue, history doesn't just live in the walls, it breathes. The Johnson House Historic Site has stood at this address since 1768, a National Historic Landmark and an official station on the Underground Railroad, where the Johnson family quietly and deliberately defied the law to shelter people escaping bondage.
Carol Riddick, Gerald Veasley kickoff Wawa Welcome America celebration
When Philadelphia celebrates, it turns to its own. As the city hosts the nation's largest 250th birthday celebration, Wawa Welcome America has tapped Carol Riddick, one of soul's most enduring voices to help carry the sound of the city into a historic national moment. For more than two decades, Riddick has been a pillar of the Philadelphia music scene, a vocalist and songwriter whose career runs through the heart of the neo-soul movement this city gave the world.
Kandi Burruss presents an intimate evening of music, storytelling at City Winery
She is a Grammy Award-winning songwriter, entrepreneur, television personality, and one of the most accomplished women in the history of R&B. Kandi Burruss has spent more than three decades proving that real talent doesn't fade, it evolves. Now, she is bringing her one-woman show titled "I Do. I Did. I'm Done." to City Winery Philadelphia on June 18-19.
FIFA Fan Festival in Lemon Hill anchors Philadelphia's World Cup experience
The crown jewel of Philadelphia's World Cup experience is the FIFA Fan Festival at Lemon Hill in East Fairmount Park that runs all 39 days of the tournament, through July 19, making Philadelphia the only U.S. city hosting an official Fan Festival for the full competition. The one-million-square-foot site features live match broadcasts on massive screens, concerts, cultural programming, food vendors, and family activities. On non-match days, programming shifts to ticketed concerts.
Tiffany Yancey brings a little Philly to Black rom-coms with 'That's Her'
The celebration at the world premiere of "That's Her" at the 30th American Black Film Festival included not only the cast but also the director. This moment was the culmination of years of hard work for a Philadelphia girl who believed in herself, persevered through countless rejections, and ultimately received recognition on one of the most prestigious platforms in Black cinema.
Tribeca Festival opens with Questlove's 'Earth, Wind & Fire' documentary
The Beacon Theatre on Manhattan’s Upper West Side became sacred ground Tuesday night. The 25th Tribeca Festival opened its milestone anniversary edition with the world premiere of “Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial VS That’s the Weight of the World),” directed by Academy Award- and Grammy-winning filmmaker Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson, and what followed the screening was nothing short of electric.
Alterik Miller gives Philly its romantic love story
Some filmmakers chase spectacle. Alterik Miller chases truth. The self-taught Newark, New Jersey native came to cinema through music, and that origin lives in every frame he makes. His work is rhythmic, patient and emotionally grounded — the kind of filmmaking that trusts its audience to feel before it asks them to think.
Philadelphia's true essence on display at Roots Picnic
Philadelphia had something to prove this Memorial Day weekend, and the City of Brotherly Love delivered— emphatically. The 18th annual Roots Picnic, held on May 30 and 31 at its new location, Belmont Plateau in Fairmount Park, made history, and the moment the gates opened on Saturday, the electricity in the air silenced any doubts about the move. The festival, previously held at the Mann Center, relocated to Belmont Plateau, where organizers expected nearly 80,000 people across the two days.
Martha Graham Dance Company, PHILADANCO! ask: 'What is an American?'
There are moments in the performing arts when history doesn't just repeat itself — it reimagines itself. Philadelphia witnessed one of those moments. The Martha Graham Dance Company (MGDC) arrived at Penn Live Arts' Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts on Friday and Saturday, with a landmark world premiere that united two pillars of American concert dance on the same stage for the very first time.
Philly shows up and shows out for BET Awards 2026
The announcement of the 2026 BET Awards nominations on Tuesday provided Philadelphia with ample reasons to celebrate. From a soul queen in the midst of a remarkable musical renaissance to a West Philly native who turned her hometown into a television phenomenon, the City of Brotherly Love is more than holding its own heading into the culture's biggest night. The 2026 BET Awards will air live June 28 on BET, with comedian Druski serving as host.
Octavia Spencer, Hannah Waddingham star in new action comedy 'Ride or Die'
Best friends, bullet wounds, and a road trip across Europe that neither of them asked for. Prime Video’s upcoming action comedy “Ride or Die” is shaping up to be one of the summer’s most irresistible watches, and the streamer just made it official. Prime Video announced the show will premiere on July 15 with all eight episodes dropping globally in more than 240 countries and territories.
ABFF at 30: 10 films to watch at the American Black Film Festival's 'Homecoming' celebration
The landmark American Black Film Festival returns to Miami Beach with a milestone slate that proves Black cinema has never been more dynamic — or more necessary. Thirty years ago, Jeff Friday had a vision: create a space where Black filmmakers, storytellers and creative visionaries could gather, compete and be seen on their terms. What began as an independent gathering of film lovers has evolved into the preeminent cultural institution for Black cinema in the world.
'I Love Boosters': Boots Riley is back with another chaotic, visually inventive ride
There is no one making films quite like Boots Riley. Eight years after “Sorry to Bother You” announced him as one of the most singular voices in American cinema, Riley returns with his sophomore feature “I Love Boosters,” which blew the roof off Austin’s Paramount Theatre as the opening night film of Sout by Southwest Film Festival’s 40th edition.
Director Boots Riley shares inspiration behind 'I Love Boosters'
Waiting for eight years is a significant duration. But if “Sorry to Bother You” taught us anything, it’s that Boots Riley doesn’t move on anyone else’s timeline and the results are worth every second. With “I Love Boosters,” his long-awaited sophomore feature, the Oakland filmmaker, rapper and provocateur has returned with something just as audacious, just as furious, and somehow even more fun.
From Victims To Rebels: Hulu’s "The Testaments" Explores The Roots Of Resistance
Hulu’s The Testaments shifts The Handmaid’s Tale saga to Gilead’s privileged girls, tracing their grooming, awakening, and resistance in a brighter yet deeply complicit world. THE TESTAMENTS - “Perfect Teeth” - As Agnes begins the rituals that mark her coming of age, she struggles with the confusing stirrings of adolescence. Meanwhile, Daisy is subjected to Gilead’s system of discipline.
'Is God Is': Aleshea Harris delves into the complexities of Black feminine rage
There is a moment early in "Is God Is" when a bedridden woman — known only as SHE — summons her twin daughters to her side and delivers a single, world-altering command: make your father dead. In any other film, that line could evoke shock. Here, under the fearless direction of playwright Aleshea Harris, who also wrote the screenplay, it lands like scripture. It is a covenant, and what follows is one of the most audacious, uncompromising and deeply necessary American films in years.
CinemaCon 2026: Black Creatives Shine Amid Industry's Ongoing Representation Gap
Hollywood descended on Caesars Palace in Las Vegas with something it hasn't had in a while: confidence. CinemaCon 2026, four days of intensive studio presentations previewing films releasing this year and into 2027, made clear that the business of going to a movie theater has come back with the passion of religion.
Cannes Film Festival 2026 showcases diverse creativity
Every May, the world turns its eyes to the sun-drenched boulevards of the French Riviera where the Cannes Film Festival crowns cinema's most celebrated voices. The 79th edition, running May 12-23, arrives with the usual pageantry — an opening night film, honorary Palmes d'Or for Peter Jackson and Barbra Streisand, and a jury presided over by South Korean master Park Chan-wook.
'One Golden Summer' gives a voice to Jackie Robinson West little leaguers
In the summer of 2014, 13 boys from Chicago's South Side did something no all-Black team had ever done: they won the U.S. Little League Championship. For one shining moment, Jackie Robinson West was the heartbeat of a city and the pride of a nation. Then, months later, officials stripped the title over disputed residency boundaries, and the celebration curdled into controversy.
CBS' 'Beyond the Gates,' an ode to Black wealth and families, renewed
CBS made it official last week: “Beyond the Gates” is not going anywhere. The network announced on April 15 that it has renewed the groundbreaking daytime drama for two additional seasons, keeping the show on the air through at least the 2027–2028 television season. The announcement came during CBS’ upfront presentation, where the network unveiled its fall primetime schedule for 2026–2027.
CBS's 'Beyond the Gates,' an ode to Black wealth and families, renewed
CBS made it official last week: “Beyond the Gates” is not going anywhere. The network announced on April 15 that it has renewed the groundbreaking daytime drama for two additional seasons, keeping the show on the air through at least the 2027–2028 television season. The announcement came during CBS’s upfront presentation, where the network unveiled its fall primetime schedule for 2026–2027.
'Reasonable Doubt' season 4 adds some new, familiar faces to the cast
Hulu’s hit legal drama “Reasonable Doubt” is stacking its fourth season with an impressive wave of new talent. The show, produced by Kerry Washington’s Simpson Street and Larry Wilmore for Wilmore Films, is one of the most streamed shows on Hulu and one of a few dramas on television with an Afro-Latina lead. Announced via Onyx Collective on Thursday, La La Anthony, Rutina Wesley, Taylor Polidore Williams, DeVaughn Nixon and Alexxis Lemire will join the series as recurring guest stars.
Cush Jumbo, Peter Capaldi on what to expect from 'Criminal Record' season 2
Some television partnerships are compelling; others are combustible. The pairing of Peter Capaldi and Cush Jumbo falls firmly in the latter, and that's precisely what makes "Criminal Record" one of the most captivating dramas on Apple TV+ now. The acclaimed thriller returned for its second season Wednesday, and the stakes are higher than ever — both on screen and in the cultural conversation surrounding it.
Two highly-anticipated Black films announced at CinemaCon 2026
CinemaCon 2026 unequivocally demonstrated that Black storytellers and the talent who bring their visions to life are at the forefront of some of the most anticipated films of the upcoming year. Two of the most anticipated titles that were present won’t hit the big screens until 2027, one of them being the anticipated Michael B. Jordan Amazon MGM reimagining of “The Thomas Crown Affair,” which is directed by him.
'Michael': A visceral, joyful depiction of the King of Pop's rise to fame
There is a scene in "Michael" where a young man stands at the precipice of his own legend — the lights drop, the music surges, and the world holds its breath. It is, for a moment, exactly the film it promises to be. Then the moment passes, and the formula reasserts itself. Antoine Fuqua's long-awaited Michael Jackson biopic is many things: a technical marvel, a musical spectacle, and a generational star-making vehicle. What it is not — and its significance matters — is a brave film.
2026 Tribeca Film Festival opens with new Earth, Wind & Fire documentary
Oscar-winning filmmaker and Roots drummer Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson is set to once again cement his place as one of the most vital voices in music documentary filmmaking. The 2026 Tribeca Festival will open with the world-premiere of his Earth, Wind & Fire documentary, titled “Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs.
Julian Horton on going from football star to TV star
Born in Philadelphia and raised in Atlanta, actor Julian Horton's path to Hollywood was anything but conventional. Horton, a former wide receiver for the Arkansas Razorbacks who briefly signed with the Tennessee Titans, made a bold pivot to acting in 2018 and has continued to pursue his passion ever since. After years of grinding through guest appearances, theater and supporting roles, it was Tyler Perry who finally gave Horton the stage he deserved.
Idris Elba living childhood dreams in 'Masters of the Universe'
He's faced down drug lords as Stringer Bell, gone toe-to-toe with a cybernetic mercenary in "Hobbs & Shaw," and suited up for pure comic-book chaos in "The Suicide Squad." But Idris Elba says none of those roles hit quite the same way as strapping on a metal helmet and stepping into the sandals of a childhood hero as Duncan, better known as Man-At-Arms, in Amazon MGM Studios' highly-anticipated live-action blockbuster "Masters of the Universe." The recently released trailer reveals Elba in...
30th American Black Film Festival to open with new Malcolm D. Lee film
When the 30th annual American Black Film Festival opens its doors in Miami Beach this May, it will do so with a statement: "Strung," the new psychological thriller from director Malcolm D. Lee. Lee's film stars Chloe Bailey as a talented violinist whose prestigious new role as a music tutor for an enigmatic, elite family spirals into a psychological battle for her safety and sanity.
'You, Me & Tuscany': A sincere bid for a rom-com, but missing the right recipe
The rom-com genre is having its moment — or, at least, Hollywood desperately wants it to. With "You, Me & Tuscany," producer Will Packer ("Girls Trip," "Think Like a Man") and director Kat Coiro ("Marry Me") make a sincere, sun-drenched bid to revive the genre with two of the most appealing young stars working today. The result is a film that is easy to like but difficult to love — much like a first date that goes pleasantly nowhere. The premise is undeniably cute.
Mamoudou Athie, Alana Haim on being the catalyst of 'The Drama'
In A24’s new dark comedy "The Drama," the wedding of the year goes spectacularly wrong and the couple most responsible for the fallout aren’t even the ones getting married. While the film centers on the fractured relationship between Charlie (Robert Pattinson) and his secret-carrying fiancée Emma (Zendaya) on the eve of their wedding, it is their best friends Mike and Rachel whose well-meaning, wine-fueled meddling sets everything in motion.
'Your Friends & Neighbors' returns with more scandal and betrayal
When "Your Friends & Neighbors" wrapped its debut season on Apple TV+ last spring, it left audiences reeling from the emotional wreckage scattered across Westmont Village's manicured lawns.
Donald Sales on taking storytelling from dance stages to Hollywood screens
Anyone who has been tuned in to TV lately may have seen Donald Sales, although you may not know his name. The Tulsa, Oklahoma native has quietly built one of the most consistent résumés in the industry, with over 44 credits spanning some of streaming’s most talked-about series.
Robert Pattinson, Zendaya put happily ever to the test in 'The Drama'
There is a particular kind of dread that settles in the chest long before anything terrible actually happens on screen — not the cheap manufactured terror of a jump scare, but the slow, creeping recognition of something true. That is the singular genius of “The Drama,” the latest provocation from Norwegian filmmaker Kristoffer Borgli, starring Zendaya and Robert Pattison.
'For All Mankind' takes a massive leap in season 5
The space race never ended — and neither does “For All Mankind.” Apple TV+’s acclaimed alternate history sci-fi drama is back for its fifth season, and it’s swinging bigger than ever.
'Reasonable Doubt' adds two familiar faces to the cast
Hulu’s “Reasonable Doubt” has proven in its first three seasons that no courtroom is more treacherous than the one Jax Stewart navigates every single episode. Now, as the hit Onyx Collective legal drama returns for season four, the stakes have been raised considerably — and two powerhouse additions to the cast are making sure audiences feel every bit of the pressure.
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