The Roots drummer Questlove is set to direct a documentary film about Earth, Wind & Fire, to be released in 2025.
The musician shared the news – appropriately – on Saturday, the 21st night of September, promising to tell “the definitive story of the elements” with the feature film.
Posting on Instagram, Questlove said the film would tell “the story of how a band led by a genius from Chicago changed our way of thinking, our minds and our hearts”.
“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 about and rediscovered myself in the process,” he added.
“I’m so excited to be directing a documentary preserving their positive but VERY vulnerable and real story of Soul, Self & Struggle. This is the story of joy, persistence, love, pain, magic and self discovery. This is Earth, Wind & Fire.”
Verdine White, Philip Bailey and Ralph Johnson from the iconic disco and R&B group are giving their support to the project, adding (via Variety): “We look forward to this in-depth journey of our band, and are so excited to have Questlove directing the documentary.”
Questlove has become increasingly involved behind the camera in recent years, directing the acclaimed, Oscar and Grammy-winning 2021 documentary Summer Of Soul, which told the story of the overlooked 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival.
In a five-star review of Summer Of Soul, NME wrote: “Initially, the film was going to be called ‘Black Woodstock’ – it’s still written on the clapper board in the opening shots – but Questlove thought that would be a disservice to what really happened in America in the summer of 1969. The Harlem Cultural Festival needed not just recognition, but ownership. With Summer of Soul, it finally has both.”
He is also set to helm a new adaptation of Disney’s 1970 classic The Aristocats, which will be re-imagined as a “live-action/hybrid”. The drummer will also oversee the film’s music and will serve as an executive producer.
Questlove is also rumoured to be involved in a documentary about Sly Stone, as well as a feature film project Dilla Time, about J Dilla.
