SOUL POWER

Year: 2008
USA: Sony Pictures Classics
UK: Eureka Entertainment
Cast: James Brown, Bill Withers, B.B. King, The Spinners, Celia Cruz and the Fania All-Stars, Mohammad Ali, Don King, Stewart Levine,
"Sweet" Charles Sherrell, Fred Wesley, Maceo Parker, Miriam Makeba, Yomo Toro, Johnny Pacheco, Manu Dibango
Director: Jeffrey Levy-Hinte
Country: USA
USA: 93 mins
UK: 92 mins
USA Rated: PG-13 for some thematic elements and brief strong language
UK Certificate: 12A contains one use of strong language
USA Release Date: 10 July 2009 (Limited Release - New York and Los Angeles)
UK Release Date: 10 July 2009 (Limited Release)

Synopsis

In 1974, the most celebrated American R&B acts of the time came together with the
most renowned musical groups in Africa for a 12-hour, three-night long concert held in Kinshasa, Zaire. The dream-child of Hugh Masekela and Stewart Levine, this music festival became a reality when they convinced boxing promoter Don King to combine the event with "The Rumble in the Jungle," the epic fight between Muhammad Ali and George Foreman, previously chronicled in the Academy Award-winning documentary WHEN WE WERE KINGS.

SOUL POWER is a verite documentary about this legendary music festival (dubbed "Zaire '74"), and it depicts the experiences and performances of such musical luminaries as James Brown, BB King, Bill Withers, Celia Cruz, among a host of others.

SOUL POWER is crafted from the extensive "outtakes" that remained after making WHEN WE WERE KINGS, which documented the epic title fight, but relegated the music festival to a small, supporting role. The "outtakes" have remained vaulted for the past 34 years, until now...