• It doesn’t get any better than Super Fly.

It’s October, y’all! We’re celebrating what we call Black Cinema Month at Soul Music Society! Get all the way into the music from Super Fly.

This was originally an instrumental used in the 1972 movie Super Fly, but it ended up having a huge role in the film. It plays at the end of the movie after the drug-dealing lead character Priest takes a stand against the white deputy commissioner, telling him, “You don’t own me, pig!”

“It was a glorious moment for our people as blacks,” Curtis Mayfield told Q magazine. “Priest had a mind, he wanted to get out. For once, in spite of what he was doing, he got away. So there came “Superfly” the song. He was trying to get over. We couldn’t be so proud of him dealing coke or using coke, but at least the man had a mind and he wasn’t just some ugly dead something in the streets after it was all over. He got out.”

Mayfield, as a member of The Impressions, was a huge part of the ‘60s civil rights movement thanks to songs like “People Get Ready” and “This Is My Country.” In the Super Fly film, he saw an opportunity to examine city life, and how drug culture affects African Americans. After seeing the screenplay, he jumped into the project and was given complete creative freedom. He wrote the songs to suit the scenes, but he made sure they could stand on their own, telling the stories even without the visuals.

Curtis Mayfield was working on the songs for the movie while it was shooting, and would often visit the set, bringing in demos so the cast and crew could hear how they would integrate into the film. He even appears in the movie, performing the song “Pusherman” in a bar scene.

In this article

Curtis Mayfield Pusherman Superfly Cover 1

Super Fly (Soundtrack)

Movie: Super Fly

Purchase vinyl

And y’all know how we use the word “fly” in our culture? This song popularized the word “fly,” which means unique and exceptional, especially when it comes to style and fashion. Super Fly is even better! In the film, the main character Priest wears some super fly clothes, too.

Y’all pop on Super Fly today and jam OUT!

Check out the other classic films that we’re celebrating for Black Cinema Month. You might rediscover an old favorite or discover something new!

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