Quick Facts
| Title | Stamped from the Beginning (2023) |
| Release Date | September 9, 2023 (TIFF); November 20, 2023 (Netflix) |
| Director | Roger Ross Williams |
| Composer | Nate Wonder & Roman GianArthur (Music Supervisor: Amani K. Smith) |
| Genre | Documentary |
| Where to Watch | Netflix |
| Runtime | 85 minutes |
Stamped from the Beginning Soundtrack: Directed and produced by Roger Ross Williams, Stamped from the Beginning is a 2023 American documentary film that premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival before streaming on Netflix beginning November 20, 2023.
The film is Based on the non-fiction book of the same name by Ibram X. Kendi, and the film explores racist tropes and imagery developed and enshrined in American culture throughout history.
The cast includes Kendi, Angela Davis, Autumn Womack, Brittany Packnett Cunningham, Brittney Cooper, Carol Anderson, Dorothy Roberts, Elizabeth Hinton, Honorée Jeffers, Imani Perry, Jennifer L. Morgan, Kellie Carter-Jackson, Lynae Vanee, Ruha Benjamin and Stephanie E. Jones-Rogers.
Stamped from the Beginning Soundtrack list
- On the Run Song by Craig Craig is a track from the album In My Zone, released in 2020.
- Cold Little Heart Song by Michael Kiwanuka: This song was released in 2016 under the album name Love & Hate.
- Get Over Here by Major Babe was released in 2022.
- The Virus Of Life by Slipknot is a track from Vol. 3 (The Subliminal Verses), released in 2004.
- Welcome To The Terrorodome by Public Enemy: This is one of the tracks from the album Fear of a Black Planet, released in 1990.
- Fight the Power by Public Enemy: This is another track from Fear of a Black Planet (1990).
- Black Woman by Emanuel: This is the track from the Alt Therapy album, released in 2021.
- Rebel by Kelsey Lu: This is the first track from the album Blood, released in 2019.
- Introvert by Little Simz: This is the first track from the album Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, released in 2021.
- MASSA by Tyler, The Creator: This is the seventh track from the album CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST, released in 2021.
A standalone soundtrack album for Stamped from the Beginning has not been released. The licensed songs above, along with the original score by Nate Wonder and Roman GianArthur, can be heard by streaming the film on Netflix, and select tracks are available on Apple Music and Spotify.
Who composed Music for Stamped from the Beginning?
Record producers and songwriters Nate Wonder & Roman GianArthur composed the original score for Stamped from the Beginning, the pair’s second film score after their 2020 scoring debut on the horror feature Antebellum.
- Nate Wonder is known for Janelle Monáe: Dirty Computer (2018), The Equalizer (2014), and Us (2019).
- Roman GianArthur is an American R&B musician, singer, record producer, and songwriter known for his collaborations with artists Janelle Monáe and Jidenna.
- Amani K. Smith served as the film’s music supervisor. He is an award-winning music supervisor and composer whose other credits include Netflix’s The Perfect Neighbor and ABC’s The Wonder Years, and he manages Salamani Music, the publishing catalog founded by his songwriter parents in 1971.
The film premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2023, to a five-minute standing ovation. It received a limited theatrical release on November 10, 2023, before streaming on Netflix on November 20, 2023.
Stamped from the Beginning opens with director Roger Ross Williams posing a deliberately provocative question to his interview subjects: “What is wrong with Black people?” The framing device, inspired by an admission in Kendi’s own book, reframes a premise embedded throughout American history — that Black people themselves are the “problem” — as the racist assumption it actually is.
The documentary blends first-person interviews with a chorus of Black women scholars and organizers, including Angela Davis and historian Carol Anderson, with animated segments (created by the Los Angeles studio Awesome + Modest, with monologues written by producer David Teague) that give voice to historical figures such as poet Phillis Wheatley, memoirist Harriet Jacobs, and anti-lynching journalist Ida B. Wells. Kendi himself makes only brief appearances on screen, reflecting Williams’s choice to center the women narrating this history rather than the author.
Stamped from the Beginning also connects that history to the present, cutting to footage of Eric Garner confronting police and white supremacists chanting in Charlottesville. Critics praised the film’s ambition while noting it stops short of its most radical implications; The Hollywood Reporter called it “an engaging doc that could have drawn more ambitious conclusions.”
Stamped from the Beginning is a hybrid documentary/scripted feature based on Dr. Kendi’s National Book Award-winning “Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America,” which won the 2016 National Book Award for Nonfiction. Source: IMDb
The documentary holds a 100% approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes and was later named to the 15-film shortlist for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar at the 96th Academy Awards, though it was not ultimately nominated.
Genre: Documentary
Release date: November 20, 2023 (Netflix, United States)
Frequently Asked Questions
Who composed the score for Stamped from the Beginning?
The original score was composed by Nate Wonder and Roman GianArthur, longtime collaborators with Janelle Monáe who made their scoring debut on 2020’s Antebellum. Amani K. Smith served as the film’s music supervisor.
What book is Stamped from the Beginning based on?
The film is based on Ibram X. Kendi’s “Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America,” winner of the 2016 National Book Award for Nonfiction.
When did Stamped from the Beginning premiere?
It premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival on September 9, 2023, received a limited theatrical release on November 10, 2023, and began streaming on Netflix on November 20, 2023.
How was Stamped from the Beginning received?
The documentary earned widespread critical acclaim, holding a 100% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, and was later named to the 15-film shortlist for the Best Documentary Feature Oscar at the 96th Academy Awards.
Who is interviewed in Stamped from the Beginning?
Alongside Kendi himself, the film features scholars and activists including Angela Davis, Brittney Cooper, Carol Anderson, Dorothy Roberts, Elizabeth Hinton, Imani Perry, and Ruha Benjamin, among others.
Related reading: Movie Soundtracks | Netflix