We’re Here: ‘The Color Purple’ and the Power of Black Music

How songs in the key of life have been integral to our survival.

From left: Taraji P. Henson as Shug, Fantasia Barrino as Celie, and Danielle Brooks as Sofia in “The Color Purple” (Photo: Warner Bros.)

If I’ve said it once, I’ve said it too many times to count: I’m not really into musicals. As with everything, there are exceptions (The Sound of Music, Chicago, Evita), but in general, when characters suddenly burst into song, it not only interrupts the…