Sterling K. Brown talks about working on Black Panther. “Sterling K. Brown is better known for his small-screen roles, such as Emmy-winning performances in The People v. O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story and This Is Us than for films, but this year his role as N’Jobu in Black […]
Author’s note: In April 2022, Monáe stated in an interview that their preferred pronouns are they/them. This article has been updated to reflect Janelle’s identity. As it turned out, the success of extravagant films like Metropolis had no bearing on the continued production of such opulent films in […]
Preamble: This started out as a simple article about science fiction’s influence on the music of Janelle Monáe. Then it became a fiery little article about championing “the other,” opposing toxic fandom, and celebrating diversity in science fiction. And then, one thing led to another, and, well…if Fritz […]
My first exposure to Sun Ra was thanks to a friend who ran a punk rock record shop but liked to dabble in the experimental. He had a bootleg VHS of a film called Space is the Place, a strange amalgamation of blaxploitation, surreal Jodorowsky-esque journey, and concert […]
I came across Steven Barnes’ Streetlethal the way I come across most things: by accident, while looking for something else. Rereading William Gibson’s Neuromancer (and its two sequels, Count Zero and Mona Lisa Overdrive) got me on a kick of rereading not just the rest of Gibson’s oeuvre, […]
At Fantastic Stories of the Imagination, author Nisi Shawl offers “A Crash Course in the History of Black Science Fiction.” In 1909 Harvard’s president, Charles W. Eliot, issued a 51-volume anthology he claimed could provide its owners with a complete liberal arts education. In the same vein, I’ve pulled […]
Find t-shirts, mugs, totes and more at our new Guttermart location at Teepublic!
The Cultural Gutter 