Television series

American Soul

Name: American Soul
Genre: Drama, Music, History
Released: 2019
Cast: Sinqua Walls, Katlyn Nichol, Christopher Jefferson, Iantha Richardson, Jason Dirden

American Soul dramatizes the birth and rise of Soul Train, Don Cornelius's revolutionary dance show that became Black America's answer to mainstream television. It's a period piece about ambition, music, and the friction between art and commerce, told through the eyes of the people who made it happen. Warm, energetic, sometimes soapy—for anyone who loves music history or the 1970s.

TVMaze rating

3.4

If you liked this

Godfather of Harlem2019

Ambitious crime drama built on the same 1970s foundation, exploring how one man builds an empire while navigating systemic racism and personal loyalty. Unapologetically glamorous and deeply human.

But Significantly darker and more violent than American Soul. If you're after feel-good music television, this pivots hard into moral compromise and bloodshed.

The Get Down2016

Baz Luhrmann's love letter to 1970s New York hip-hop culture. Wildly energetic, gorgeously shot, built around the idea that art emerges from struggle and joy in equal measure.

But Cancelled after one season. The story doesn't conclude, which is infuriating if you need resolution more than you need vibes.

Dreamgirls2006

The definitive film about Diana Ross, The Supremes, and the cost of chasing stardom. Beyoncé is luminous; the music is transcendent. Pure drama and spectacle.

But Slightly paint-by-numbers biopic structure. You can feel the story beats coming, and the film doesn't surprise you on plot.

Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from American Soul

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Sparkle1976

Both capture the 1970s Black music world, but Sparkle shows the cost—the predation, addiction, and tragedy—that American Soul's dance floor keeps at arm's length. They're two sides of the same era.

The original film, not the 2012 remake—a raw, urgent story about three sisters in a Detroit girl group trying to survive the music industry's exploitation. It's grimy, real, and Whitney Houston is heartbreaking. This is the lived experience behind the glamour that Soul Train was selling.

But Shot on a budget and it shows. The picture quality is grainy, the production values modest, and the ending is devastatingly dark in ways that feel uncomfortable.

I May Destroy You2020

Brilliant, shape-shifting comedy-drama about art, identity, and friendship in contemporary London. Michaela Coel writes and stars; it's raw and inventive in ways that feel genuinely urgent.

But Different era and setting entirely. If you specifically want 1970s music history, this is a pivot into contemporary life and trauma processing.

The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel2017

A woman finds her voice and her ambition in the 1950s-60s. If you loved the energy and optimism of watching American Soul's characters build something, this scratches that itch beautifully.

But Comedy-drama that prioritizes laughs and witticisms. The tone is lighter, sometimes dizzyingly so, which might feel flippant if you want something grounded.

Hairspray2007

A joyful, genuinely integrated musical about a Baltimore dance show breaking racial barriers in the 1960s. Pure energy, genuine heart, and music that makes you want to move.

But It's cheerful almost to the point of being simplistic about racism. This is deliberately optimistic rather than historically complicated.

Insecure2016

Issa Rae's smart, funny exploration of Black friendship, ambition, and identity in contemporary Los Angeles. Warm without being saccharine, grounded in real life and actual stakes.

But Set in the modern day. No 1970s aesthetic, no music industry backdrop—if you're watching for the historical period, this won't scratch that itch.

MINDHUNTER2017

Meticulously crafted, slow-burn series about the birth of criminal profiling in the 1970s FBI. Incredibly intelligent and visually composed; it takes its subject matter seriously.

But Deliberately paced and intellectually dense. The opposite of Soul Train's energy; this is contemplative and sometimes draining.

Once Upon a Time in America1984

Both explore the mythology of building an empire in America, but Leone's interested in how that dream rots from the inside. American Soul celebrates the platform; this asks what the platform costs.

Sergio Leone's epic about friendship, ambition, and the corruption of dreams across decades. It's about the rise and fall of men who built something in the 1920s-30s, with music and period detail that's intoxicating.

But Four hours long in the best cut, told non-linearly, and morally bleak. This is about the American dream curdling into violence and regret—if you want optimism, look elsewhere.