Questlove rounded up an A-list group of Black musical talent to share their praises of the “Black genius” Sly Stone in the new documentary Sly Lives! (aka The Burden of Black Genius).
The new film premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival on Thursday, followed by the debut of the official trailer for Questlove’s Hulu documentary, Billboard reports. The two-minute trailer features music legends, including André 3000, Chaka Khan, George Clinton, D’Angelo, and Q-Tip, among others, reflecting on Sly Stone’s groundbreaking role as a funk-soul pioneer.
The Roots drummer can be seen asking the Outkast rapper if he believes in the concept of “Black genius” before quick flashes show highlights of pinnacle moments for Stone, who shot to fame in 1968 with the release of his band’s first hit, “Dance to the Music.” Energetic dance moves, flamboyant costumes, oversized sunglasses, and a towering afro set the stage for highlights of Stone’s career, all underscored by his 1969 No. 1 hit, “Everyday People,” playing in the background.
Photos of the diverse making of Sly and the Family Stone help transition the conversation around how “massively popular” the group was with their messaging of peace and unity and a string of Billboard Hot 100 top 10s, including “Hot Fun in the Summertime,” “Dance to the Music,” and No. 1 smashes “Family Affair” and “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Again).”
“Sly created this unique space,” Q-Tip says.
P-Funk icon Clinton goes on to note how groundbreaking Sly and the Family Stone were to have a “mixed” line-up of men and women, white and Black, in their band.
“They sounded like nothing else,” producer Jimmy Jam says of the group’s uplifting blend of soul, pop, R&B, funk, and gospel on tracks like “I Want to Take You Higher” and “If You Want Me to Stay.”
Those songs served as anthems during a time when the nation was deeply divided over the Vietnam War. Archival footage in the documentary shows the heightened attention Stone received during the 1960s and 1970s before his drug use and erratic behavior effectively ended the group by 1975.
“at the time… it was almost too much all at once,” Stone says in the doc.
With all highs come some low lows, and the documentary trailer highlights how the film will delve into the “anxiety, the pressure, the drug use” that plagued Stone’s career.
“If you’ve been on this heightened, explosive life… your body has taken in so much energy, and you’ve given out so much energy, and you stop… where’s that energy go?” André 3000 asks.
Other icons who lent their time to appear in the documentary include Nile Rodgers, P-Funk singer Ruth Copeland, music industry icon Clive Davis, and Family Stone members Larry Graham Jr., Jerry Martini, and Greg Errico. Sly Lives will begin streaming on Hulu on Feb. 13.
It’s Questlove’s second documentary following his Oscar-winning 2021 Summer of Soul doc about the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival (aka “Black Woodstock”) which Sly and the Family Stone took part in. Next up will be a documentary on Earth, Wind & Fire, which he announced last September.
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