First, let me state all the ways I LOVE TUBI.
It has a fantastic library of all sorts including older films. Here is a short list of music films I was thrilled to recently watch on Tubi for some of my research:
New Orleans (1947). The only scripted film that features Billie Holiday with Louis Armstrong in bonus and many others.
Searching for Sugar Man (2012). No presentation needed.
Bayou Maharajah (2013) - a doc about pianist genius James Booker
Beat Street (1984)- seminal early Hip-Hop film produced by Harry Belafonte to try and change the negative narrative around the culture
And here is a little perspective on Tubi by Vince Staples in his recent Rolling Stone interview:
I don’t think that they’re ever going to give us a fair shot, but I don’t think that that means we don’t matter. They made such a big deal out of the people making those films off iPhones like Tangerine and whatnot, and that’s amazing. That should show us that we can also do that same thing no matter how small our voice is, no matter what we create, it matters. People get a lot of flack for making Tubi movies that are “low budget,” but I’m happy people feel that they have somewhere they can put their ideas, and people will watch and digest them, and they’re able to express themselves. It’s important for us to just — no matter what they throw our way — continue to create because our stories and our voices matter at every scale."
And an older article by Philip Lewis also stressing Tubi’s influence on black filmmaking:
The independent Black movies on Tubi are attracting an often-ignored segment of movie watchers—those who enjoy the low-to-mid-budget television film that was ubiquitous years ago. But now, rather than spend money on a reboot or a blockbuster production, they can watch an indie movie on Tubi in the comfort of their home. “To anyone that is not a fan of independent film, or anyone that wants to get involved in independent film—give it a try,” Grant insisted. “Tubi gives you an opportunity at no charge to give those films a try. And anyone that's interested in doing it, starting on the independent level is a great place to start.” “You won’t be disappointed and you might be surprised.”
Hence my excitement that LA STEREO TV music documentary It’s Yours produced over ten years, chronicling in real time the rise of Hip-Hop on social media, is now on TUBI! Give it a play
:
https://tubitv.com/movies/100041893/it-s-yours-hip-hop-the-internet