In 1958 photographer Art Kane captured an iconic snapshot for Esquire Magazine in which 57 famous jazz musicians at the time posed together in font of a brownstone in Harlem. The photo would be known as “A Great Day In Harlem,” and go one to be one of the more recognizable images in pop culture.
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40 years later, XXL Magazine paid homage to the shot with a cover photo titled “The Greatest Day In Hip-Hop History” in which the genre’s biggest stars gathered back on a Harlem block for yet another iconic clip in 1998. The inspiration would spark back up in 2005 for “A Great Day In Atlanta” when the city’s most influential artists gathered for an MTV special and reimagined the same concept.
Now, Netflix, which launched its Strong Black Lead initiative earlier this year has come through with yet another recreation of the shot for “A Great Day In Hollywood” as the streaming platform gathered a mixture of 47 actors, actresses, directors, writers, and producers native to its original shows and films for a brownstone snapshot that included the likes of Ava DuVernay, Spike Lee, Rev Run, Lena Waithe, and Alfre Woodard.
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The new photo comes accompanied by a short video, directed by Lacey Duke and narrated by 16-year old Stranger Things star Caleb McLaughlin.
“We stand up on every stage and every screen,” Caleb says. “A day when black women are boldly the lead character, whether inmates or scholars. When not a genre, because there’s no one way to be black. We’re writing while black: nuanced and complex […] This is not a moment. This is a movement.”
Similar to the accounts of the orchestrators of previous iterations of “Great Day” portraits,” Duke touched on the overwhelming feeling that comes with putting together such a unifiying moment in history.
“It was a pretty magical couple of hours. All these amazingly talented, beautiful individuals in one space being supportive and just looking stunning together, all here to pull off this one take wonder,” says Duke. “Alfre Woodard even lead everyone in an epic rendition of ‘Lift Every Voice and Sing’ before we started shooting. It was beautiful, and in a flash, it was over. It was probably the most overwhelming two hours of my career. I was just so happy to be a part of history.”
Catch the full roster of creatives who were on set for this moment below:
Ajiona Alexus (13 Reasons Why)
Alfre Woodard (Luke Cage; Juanita)
Alisha Boe (13 Reasons Why)
Antoinette Robertson (Dear White People)
Antonique Smith (Luke Cage)
Ashley Blaine Featherson (Dear White People)
Ava DuVernay (13th, Central Park Five)
Brett Gray (On My Block)
Britney Young (GLOW)
Caleb McLaughlin (Stranger Things)
Chante Adams (Roxanne Roxanne)
Cheo Hodari Coker (Luke Cage)
Danielle Brooks (Orange is the New Black)
Dawn Porter (Bobby Kennedy for President)
DeRay Davis (How To Act Black)
Derek Luke (13 Reasons Why)
DeRon Horton (Dear White People)
Gabrielle Dennis (Luke Cage)
Hayley Law (Altered Carbon; Riverdale)
Justin Simien (Dear White People)
Justine Simmons (All About The Washingtons)
Kano (Top Boy)
Kat Graham (The Holiday Calendar; How It Ends)
Kia Stevens (GLOW)
Laverne Cox (Orange is the New Black)
Lena Waithe (Master of None; Dear White People; Step Sisters)
Logan Browning (Dear White People)
Marlon Wayans (Naked; Woke-ish)
Marque Richardson (Dear White People; Step Sisters)
Mike Colter (Luke Cage)
Mustafa Shakir (Luke Cage)
Nia Long (Roxanne Roxanne, Dear White People)
Nia Jervier (Dear White People; Step Sisters)
Priah Ferguson (Stranger Things)
Quincy Brown (The Holiday Calendar)
Rapsody (Rapture)
Rev Run (All About The Washingtons)
Russell Hornsby (Seven Seconds)
Sacha Jenkins (Rapture)
Samantha Logan (13 Reasons Why)
Sierra Capri (On My Block)
Simone Missick (Luke Cage)
Spike Lee (She’s Gotta Have It)
Steven Silver (13 Reasons Why)
Sydelle Noel (GLOW)
Vaneza Oliveira (3%)
Yance Ford (Strong Island)
