Skip to main content

KweliTV is a streaming service that puts Black stories first

The latest offering in streaming services started the way most great things do: on a couch during an easy, slow day. KweliTV founder Deshuna Spencer was trying to find something to watch. Flipping through channel after channel, she quickly realized she was failing to find any kind of show or film to relate to.

“I was watching and I thought, where are all of these awesome independent films that I read about on these blogs?” Spencer told Digital Trends. “Even premiere and normal streaming services had the same problem: While there was some content there, it wasn’t the vast amount of content that I was looking for.”

Enter KweliTV.

Recommended Videos

Founded in Spencer’s home of Alexandria, Virginia, KweliTV was created as an answer to streaming services’ lack of Black content.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

The streaming service is home to over 400 indie films and television shows, with over 35,000 registered users and growing. But it’s more than just a “Black Netflix.

Rather than try to compete with larger services that boast millions in revenue and funding, KweliTV wants to thrive in the gap, by being deliberate about the content it hosts. Spencer considers KweliTV’s list carefully curated, and maintains that the service is purposeful about only hosting movies that don’t just feature Black characters, but also feature Black directors, writers, and producers.

As of 2020, 98% of KweliTV’s films were official selections at film festivals.

“One of the challenges I see when it comes to available Black content is that it’s very monolithic,” Spencer says. “The stories tend to be the same. We are not a monolithic community. We have a vast amount of stories to tell. For KweliTV, our goal is to show authentic stories. We don’t shy away from realities, but we want to show the other experiences, the ones viewers don’t typically see.”

That experience doesn’t just prevent viewers from seeing different films.

It also prevents newer and more subversive works from being accepted into the classic canon. According to a report from The New York Times, the Criterion Channel, a streaming service attached to the famed Criterion list, has a famed blind spot for Black content and creators. Out of the 1,034 films released, only four were by Black directors, four were from Black directors outside of the U.S, and only one of the films was by a Black woman of color.

While Netflix’s new Black Lives Matter film collection features films and shows from people of color, the list contains less than 100 offerings, most of which are centered on the African-American experience.

“I feel like black stories can sometimes be an afterthought, even now when people are definitely more focused on representing the Black community. And I hear people say, ‘Well, it’s for your community.’ And yeah, that’s true but it’s for other people too. And there’s a missed opportunity there. There are services, like Criterion or Netflix, who will say ‘we want to have this little segment for them,’ but the reality is everyone can enjoy Black content.

While its content is made for everyone, it is the particulars that make KweliTV so specific. Careful for its audience, Spencer refuses to add a plethora of movies that depict Black suffering, citing the fact that Black people are already inundated with that kind of footage. But her careful curation of indie films that can disappear after festival circuits is what makes KweliTV such a special service.

“The bigger platforms are focused on bigger name talent, celebrities who are well known and can draw viewers. But KweliTV hosts award-winning filmmakers who just haven’t had the same opportunity, who might not have that big studio attached, or 20,000 followers on Twitter. So I think that we’re really giving Black filmmakers a chance to showcase their work, a way to have their films showcased whereas before, they could’ve disappeared,” says Spencer.

While Netflix and Criterion have recently taken a larger interest in showcasing a plethora of Black films, that current interest might be a temporary occurrence. Spencer isn’t concerned.

“When things die down, the other platforms might take down Black Lives Matter from their Twitter accounts, but our mission won’t change,” says Spencer. “That’s what makes us different.”

KweliTV is available on Roku, AmazonFire, AppleTV, and Google Play. You can subscribe to KweliTV here.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misspelled Deshuna Spencer’s first name and misidentified her hometown. The article has been updated.

Zoe Christen Jones
Zoe Christen Jones is a breaking news reporter. She covers news, digital culture, tech, and more. Previously, she was…
3 great free movies to stream this weekend (January 10-12)
Harrison Ford in a straw hat with an Amish woman behind him in the movie Witness.

January is typically a slow month for new releases. Most of the Christmas Day releases — including Mufasa: The Lion King, A Complete Unknown, and Nosferatu — will continue to draw audiences to the theater this weekend. There are some new offerings, though. One is Den of Thieves 2: Pantera, a heist film starring Gerard Butler, and the other is Better Man, a biopic about Robbie Williams as a CGI chimp.

Theaters are always the best option for watching movies. If you somehow can't make it to the cinema this weekend, don't worry about it. Stay home and stream a free movie on a FAST service. To save you some time, here are three recommendations to get you started. Try watching a gut-wrenching prison thriller, a compelling adult drama, or a sci-fi disaster.

Read more
Don’t let these 3 hidden December 2024 streaming TV shows fly under your radar
A man and woman stand outside looking shocked in The Sticky.

Every month, great TV shows are released, including new seasons of popular ones. But there are also hidden gems you might not have heard of but would totally love. This month, two of the three hidden December streaming TV shows you don’t want to fly under your radar are adult animated series. One is a superhero series, and the other features stories based on popular video games and video game franchises.

The third is set in the Great White North of Canada and is a surprisingly good story about a woman willing to do whatever it takes to protect her business. These three hidden gems are worth checking out as you close yet another year and look toward 2025.

Read more
BritBox unveils 2025 slate of new and returning TV shows
Matthew Rhys stands on a rocky plateau in Agatha Christie's Towards Zero.

With several weeks left to go in 2024, BritBox, the go-to streaming service for all British TV obsessives, has unveiled its 2025 slate of new and returning TV shows. The platform also released a 90-second preview featuring footage from many of its forthcoming additions, including the Hugh Bonneville and Karen Gillan-starring Douglas is Cancelled and the Anjelica Huston and Matthew Rhys-led Agatha Christie adaptation Towards Zero. The sizzle reel also features footage from the new seasons of beloved returning shows like Vera, Karen Pirie, and Blue Lights.

“BritBox anticipates our most electrifying year yet, delivering a slate of premium television to delight BritBox fans and new audiences," said Robert Schildhouse, president of BritBox North America and GM BritBox International. "From inspired reimaginings of well-known tales to dramas filled with surprise, intrigue, and emotional resonance, BritBox presents gripping narratives, complex challenges, and dynamic characters, crafted by powerhouse talent in front of and behind the camera. We can’t wait for everyone to experience the next chapter of BritBox’s story onscreen in 2025.”

Read more