Questlove To Direct Documentary On Legendary Earth, Wind & Fire
Six-time Grammy winner and Academy Award-winning director Questlove has announced that his next project will be a documentary on the legendary music group Earth, Wind & Fire.
Earth, Wind & Fire is one of the most critically acclaimed and commercially successful pop bands of all time, with timeless hits such as “Shining Star,” “Let’s Groove,” “Reasons,” and, of course, “September.” The upcoming feature documentary, which Questlove teased on social media as arriving in 2025, will dive into the group’s legacy, cultural influence, and extensive body of work.
The film will feature exclusive access to visual, audio, and written archives, with support from the estate of the late Maurice White and the band itself.
“Having been baptized in the Afrocentric joy river of this powerhouse unit, I’ve learned about them, I’ve learned about us & more importantly, I’ve learned and rediscovered myself in the process,” said Thompson in a statement announcing the project. “I’m so excited to be part of the process of preserving their positive but VERY vulnerable and real story of Soul, Self & Struggle.”
Fans eagerly shared their excitement in the comments section. “They’re legends! [star emoji] so excited for this, cannot wait to see this doco. Questlove will give them the big love they deserve!” one fan wrote. Several noted how fitting it was for the announcement to be made on the “21st night of September,” with one person commenting, “Dropping this on 21st of September is [fire emoji],” and another suggesting, “Hope it comes in September [laughing emoji].”
According to Variety, the documentary is being financed by Fifth Season (“McCartney 3, 2, 1,” “Being Mary Tyler Moore,” “Superpower,” and “Kiss the Future”), which will also manage sales in collaboration with WME.
This project marks Questlove’s latest venture into filmmaking following his directorial debut with Summer of Soul (…Or, When the Revolution Could Not Be Televised), which won an Academy Award, a BAFTA award, a Film Independent Spirit award, a Peabody award, and the Sundance grand jury prize.
In addition, the Roots frontman has executive produced documentaries like The League, directed by Academy Award nominee Sam Pollard, and Descendant, a Sundance award winner directed by Emmy nominee Margaret Brown. He is also working on a documentary about Sly and the Family Stone.
According to Billboard, producers for the Earth, Wind & Fire documentary include Questlove, RadicalMedia’s Dave Sirulnick and Samantha Grogin, Broken Halo Entertainment’s KB White (son of the late Maurice White), and Kinfolk Management + Media’s Arron Saxe. The film will be produced in association with Sony Music Vision. Executive producers include Zarah Zohlman and Shawn Gee of Two One Five Entertainment (the production company founded by Questlove and Black Thought), Jon Kamen of RadicalMedia, Cheo Hodari Coker, and Amos Newman.
