REVIEW: ‘MA RAINEY’S BLACK BOTTOM’ TELLS THE WHOLE TRUTH BEHIND DIFFICULT BLACKS IN THE INDUSTRY By James R. Sanders

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” stings with lessons Ma Rainey was called the Mother of the for us, by us, They’re painful, and devastating, Blues. Her protégé Bessie Smith, would and surprising, and enraging – and typical. reach unprecedented success, but it was on the heels of Rainey’s trailblazing. Fittingly using the blues as a catalyst to tell the story, at first glance, the film adaptation of In Chicago, 1927, Ma Rainey returned to August Wilson’s classic play positions Ma record for Paramount Records. Her band, Rainey as a diva with an attitude. Nowadays, including Levee (played by Chadwick they call it difficult. A difficult Black woman – Boseman) arrived separately. Ma Rainey with a longsuffering white manager who just was 1 hour late. wants “the best” for her – that’s what some will gather from the Netflix production. When she arrived, she wanted a fan – it was hot. She wanted a Coke – three of them. She That gathering together of Blackness under a wanted her nephew, a young man with a basic package with a bow, couldn’t be further speech impediment, to record the intro to from the truth of what August Wilson originally her most famous song. After 8 takes, they intended. finally nailed down the song – alas, the recording stopped unbeknownst.

In the shadow of her once protégé, with a new sound and advanced vocal agility now all the rage, Ma Rainey couldn’t adjust – and the new, interesting, swinging, Levee didn’t make things for her any easier. Chadwick Boseman’s performance as Levee was visceral. He might not have known that it would be his last project, since he was prepping for the Black Panther sequel at the time. As a last project, Boseman’s portrayal of the musician who rode on a dream ultimately being taken away at the will of a white man; was breathtaking.

The film, like the play, tell a real story all too familiar then, and now, about Black exploitation in entertainment.

Ma Rainey’s leverage was her voice, she knew that. As long as she had something they wanted, they would give her what she wanted -- even amidst a backdrop of resentment.

Who did she think she was? The nerve. The audacity. To demand what her white counterparts had – it was simply unheard of. But that’s who she was.

Viola Davis, in a now viral interview from 1—2 years ago, said that she was the equivalent of Meryl Streep, and yet, she still has to negotiate to get her worth at every point.

When Mo’Nique demanded the same from Netflix, ironically, she became a laughingstock. The word difficult was attached to the Academy Award-winning comedienne by a Black executive. The parallels between Davis, Mo’Nique, and Rainey – in that vain are felt in the film.

Davis captures Ma Rainey’s angst perfectly. In every scene, she channels her own struggle with getting her worth and maintaining ownership over her talent; to infuse that experience into Ma Rainey’s wholeness.

Davis held nothing back. Her performance mirrors The word, difficult has long since Ma Rainey’s toughness – a result of having to be. been attached to Black female entertainers, along with it, the Rainey’s difficultness comes to a head when she assumption that they should be demands payment for her nephew who laid down “grateful” for the opportunities the initial vocals as an intro to her “Black Bottom” they have instead of crediting song. There was to be a conflict between her, her their talent, and God-given manager, and the label head. That was, until they abilities. remembered, she hadn’t yet signed the waiver. Without the waiver, the label couldn’t release the Not Ma Rainey. music. She knew this.

“Soon as they get my voice down on one of them recording machines, then it just like I be some kind of whore and they roll over and put their pants on. They aint got no use for me then,” Davis’ Rainey says in one of the many truth scenes beautifully captured by director, George C. Wolfe. Her voice was painful, sugary, and filled with the kind of truth that came with not just singing the blues but living the blues. She never got her due for modernizing the genre. Still, her legacy can be heard in Bessie, Billie, Aretha, and Mary.

The film also stars Coleman Domingo and Gylnn Turman – both of whom delivered incredible performances.

“Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” is available for streaming on Netflix today. The film is directed by George C. Wolfe and executive produced by Denzel Washington.