NEW YORK – From swing to bebop to free jazz, Sun Ra bridged myriad musical styles to form his own avant-garde sound. With his ever-evolving collective, the Arkestra, he stretched the boundaries of jazz and self-produced more than 200 records, in addition to being one of the first Black artists to have his own record label. Remembered today as the “Godfather of Afrofuturism,” Sun Ra weaved ancient Egyptian and interstellar metaphors into a definitive musical and spiritual vision that resonates across generations. Discover the extraordinary life of this poet, philosopher, and musical visionary in American Masters – Sun Ra: Do The Impossible, premiering nationwide Friday, February 20 at 9 p.m. ET on PBS (check local listings), pbs.org/americanmasters and the PBS App.
Featuring archival footage and stills, performance clips, and original interviews, Sun Ra: Do The Impossible is a kaleidoscopic view of the artist’s legacy, from his early days growing up in Alabama to his musical journey around the country through cities such as Chicago, New York, Berkeley, and Philadelphia as bandleader of his Arkestra. Interviews with notable Arkestra members, including Marshall Allen, Ahmed Abdullah, Cheryl Banks-Smith, and Michael Ray, provide profound insight into his artistry, while conversations with scholars and music experts like King Britt, Harmony Holiday, Fred Moten, and Thomas Stanley highlight Sun Ra’s influence on today's music.
Born Herman Poole Blount in 1914, Sun Ra was raised in Birmingham, Alabama. An adept pianist and musical prodigy, Sun Ra had a revelatory experience as a young man: he was transported to Saturn and was called to pursue music. His voyage into a dynamic vision of a Black Space Age took off as a result of this event, leading him to develop a unique, genre melding sound that defied musical boundaries.
In 1952, inspired by his studies of Ancient Egypt and the dawn of the Space Age, he legally changed his name to Le Sony'r Ra, shortened to Sun Ra. Over the course of his career, he wrote more than 1,000 compositions, spanning an eclectic range of styles, from barrelhouse blues to big band swing, to electronic experimental music and beyond, pioneered the use of electronic keyboards, and published countless broadsheets and poems. The elaborate road shows of his big band, Sun Ra And His Myth Science Arkestra, fused music, dance, costumes, and theatrics into unforgettable sonic rituals experienced by audiences the world over.
Sun Ra departed Earth at the age of 79 from his birthplace of Birmingham, Alabama. Revered as a trailblazing figure in the movement known today as Afrofuturism, he has inspired innovators like Janelle Monáe, Solange, Flying Lotus, Madlib, and George Clinton. The Sun Ra Arkestra – under the leadership of Marshall Allen, age 101, and Knoel Scott – continues to this day, delighting audiences around the globe with Sun Ra's singular brand of cosmic jazz.
The filmmaker of Sun Ra: Do The Impossible is Christine Turner, whose previous work includes the Academy Award-nominated documentary The Barber of Little Rock and J’Nai Bridges Unamplified, an American Masters co-production with Firelight Media as part of the In The Making series, which follows the titular opera singer as she takes the stage in a tribute performance to George Floyd.
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