Television has evolved with the world around it and diverse offerings in media are more important right now than ever since they help elevate underrepresented groups that have long been absent from our screens.
Black shows have transformed from depicting Blacks in service roles to shining a light on the conversations that emphasize the universality of Black culture and stories- humor, love, family, conflict, and every other kind of experience.
Whether you’re looking for a ground-breaking drama, steamy romance, boardroom antics, or side-splitting comedy, there’s some stellar content out there right now- and much of it is coming from and staring Black creators. We have created this list to narrow things down for you (and us), so that next time when you’re unsure of what to watch, you can turn into this handy-dandy list.
Here’s a list of really good Black-led Tv shows that are available to stream right now.
Bel- Air
If you know the famous theme song, The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, you kind of know what this show is about. Bel Air is a re-imagined version of the 90s sitcom, The Fresh Prince of BelAir but unlike the original, it’s a drama not comedy. It tells the journey of a young Will and how his mom sent him to a posh LA suburb to live with their rich family members after getting into some neighborhood beef in the west side of Philly. From that moment on, Will has a hard time adjusting to the new lifestyle and is under the watchful eye of Uncle Phil( Adrian Homles), Aunt Vivian(Cassandra Freeman) along with his cousins Carlton, Hilary, and Ashley in their lavish BelAir home.
Run the World
Set in Harlem, creator Leigh Davenport’s series, Run the World follows four 30-something lifelong friends with south roots as they navigate their personal and professional lives. It’s all about the power of female friendships and there are going to be incidents where the friends support each other, maybe tell some harsh truths, and also encounter bumps on the road to ‘ruling the world’. The first and second season episodes are densely packed, foregrounding each woman’s story and unique set of romantic troubles, and paired with their corresponding actors each character becomes distinct. The series offers the feeling you’d want while catching up with an old friend: it’s giddy and gossipy.
Harlem
Do we need another show about black women living in Harlem? Of course, we do. The show’s quartet, like Sex and the City, is a group of black women who juggle love, work, and personal fulfillment in the Mecca that is Harlem NYC. Over the course of the season, the group navigates universal tribulation- dating, career, and the best scenes are when the four friends are at one of their favorite restaurants because they get called on the quirks in each others personalities.
Reasonable Doubt
Reasonable Doubt which was created by Scandal vet Raamla Mohamed and boasts a premiere directed by Scandal star Kerry Washington- the show follows Jax Stewart (Emayatzy Corinealdi) an elite LA defense attorney juggling family struggles, romantic possibilities, and the highest murder case of her career. Played in both flashback and present day, her attention is divided between her duties as a mom, caseload, and her attraction to Damon( Micheal Early) a man she once defended, incarcerated for many years but still a vivid part of her life.
Swarm
Swarm is a horror thriller television series about the dark side of music fandom created by Donald Glover. It follows Dre (Dominique Fishback) a young woman who is obsessed with pop star Ni’Jah and is willing to max out credit cards to buy front-row tickets that she is nowhere near able to afford and is ready to murder online trolls and even her roommate Marrisa( Chloe Bailey) to friend the celebrity’s honor. Ni’Jah is clearly styled to resemble Beyonce and the opening words before each episode says plenty: “This is not a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events, is intentional.”
Power Book 2: Ghost
A sequel to the series ‘Power’ the series picks up shortly after the earth-shattering events and on his own for the first time, Tariq St. Patrick navigates his new life: his father James ‘Ghost’ is dead and his mother Tasha is in prison facing charges for his murder- even though Tariq pulled the trigger. He divided his time between school and hustling to pay his mother’s defense attorney but when he runs out of options Tariq turns to the familiar drug game, entangling him with a cutthroat family headed by Tejada.
If you’re looking for a top-notch Black Tv show- you’ve come to the right place, grab a bowl of popcorn, sit back, get ready to laugh, cry, and everything in between.
