23 movies, shows, and music that celebrate Black Girl Magic

Without Living Single, there would be no Friends, and that’s the bottom line. Inspirational from the start, this ‘90s Fox series was the pinnacle of cool as it featured four best friends (and maybe a pair of frenemies) living their best lives in New York City. Again, it moved the creators of Friends to take a page and move forward with their own show, but Living Single can also be found in other shows like Girlfriends and Insecure.

Dreamgirls was a dream come true for Black Girl Magic in 2006. Beyonce and Jennifer Hudson showed up and showed out, with Hudson inevitably winning an Oscar for that performance.

Black people know all too well that other people love to try and touch their hair. It’s a weird thing, and it should stop. So many had nothing but praise and love for Solange Knowles’ “Don’t Touch My Hair.”

There have been a lot, a lot, of sitcom moms but when it’s broken down there is one that always sits atop the lists and that’s Clair Huxtable from The Cosby Show. A mother many wished was their own, and a lawyer, Clair was and is the pinnacle of girl power.

While Abbott Elementary boasts a variety of characters, it is helmed by and stars Quinta Brunson, the latest creator in Hollywood to highlight Black excellence on the small screen with a cast that includes not only Janelle James and Sheryl Lee Ralph, but a cascade of other amazing Black girls as the students.

One could take a list such as this and overflow it with Beyonce moments from her impressive and moving career, but it’s “Brown Skin Girl” featuring her firstborn, Blue Ivy, from The Lion King: The Gift soundtrack that feels the most magical.

Keke Palmer and SZA were a match made in heaven in 2025’s One of Them Days, a movie that takes a page out of Friday’s book and places it on the modern-day struggle bus as they play roommates who have to do just about anything to avoid eviction.

‘90s kids know all too well that Susie Carmichael changed the game on Nickelodeon’s Rugrats when she debuted as the only one willing to go toe-to-toe with the spoiled menace, Angelica Pickles. On top of that, Susie was one of the few Black female cartoon characters for young audiences at the time, and she still remains one of the best.

Perhaps Black women needed an anthem such as “Blk Girl Soldier” by Jamila Woods because as the late Malcolm X famously said, “The most disrespected person in America is the Black woman. The most unprotected person in America is the Black woman. The most neglected person in America is the Black woman.” Black women use not only that special magic, but their tenacity to overcome, always.

Issa Rae represented for the millennial Black women out there when she created and starred in HBO’s Insecure. A show set in Los Angeles, Insecure highlighted the highs and lows of adulthood from the perspective of a 20-something just trying to keep her head above water when it came to work, friends, and her love life.

It’s no secret that history books don’t always teach every inch of the past, and oftentimes there are certain people and events that get swept under the rug. So when Hidden Figures was released in 2016, it was the first time many learned about the team of Black women who helped with NASA’s actual progress.

The entirety of The Proud Family is Golden but it’s Penny Proud who deserves the praise for holding it down as the main character of the animated shenanigans.

Brandy and Monica both dominated music when they were just teenagers and because of the way the world works - they were pitted against one another just like Britney and Christina would be later. So when the two linked up in 1998 for “The Boy Is Mine,” it was one of the most talked about moments in pop culture, ever. To this day, that magic is still going strong as Ariana Grande reworked the song with the pair in 2024 for her Eternal Sunshine album.

It’s widely known that when it comes to sketch comedy on television, Saturday Night Live has always been #1, but it’s also known that the NBC show has had its issues with diversity. It’s gotten better over the years, but when something doesn’t exist - one simply has to make their own space. The Wayans did it back in the day with In Living Color, and in recent years Robin Thede did the same with A Black Lady Sketch Show.

Only three women have ever left the Grammys with the Best Rap Album title: Lauryn Hill, Cardi B, and Doechii. The latter did so in 2025. Doechii won the award and the night with one of the best performances ever featured on that particular awards program.

Does anyone else miss the days when the biggest scandal in D.C. revolved around Olivia Pope?

Disney started dropping movies in the ‘30s, and their Disney princess lineup took far too long to diversify. The ‘90s started to bring about change, but it wasn’t until 2009 that the world got an official Black Disney princess with Tiana in The Princess and the Frog.

Those old enough to know understand that Brandy was that girl in the ‘90s. She was Zendaya before Zendaya was even a thought in her parents’ mind. She was a hit in music, and soon enough Brandy entered the acting realm and scored her own series, Moesha. It was a teen show that rivaled the likes of Boy Meets World and My So-Called Life.

Whitney Houston is and will forever be the pinnacle of Black Girl Magic and while everything from her movies to her countless releases could be on this, it’s her powerhouse vocal performance in “I Will Always Love You” that remains supreme.

Regina Hall, Tiffany Haddish, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Queen Latifah did not have to go as hard as they did in 2017’s Girls Trip, but they did just that. Over $140 million at the box office on a budget that didn’t even hit $20 million? That’s a hit based on finances alone, but critics praised it with Rotten Tomatoes giving it a 91%.

Doc McStuffins may not be a real doctor, but she inspired a generation of little girls to get into medicine based solely on her stuffed animal practice.

UPN was the premiere place in the 2000s for Black entertainment, greenlighting a lot of sitcoms with Black casts across that board. One of their best was the 21st Century of Living Single, Girlfriends.

The Disney Channel rarely flops when it comes to casting the leads of their series. Just look at the insane talent that came in the 2000s with Miley Cyrus, Selena Gomez, and Demi Lovato. However, before those three - there was another queen of the network. No, not Hilary Duff, but rather Raven-Symoné. She was everything as Raven Baxter, the teen psychic fashionista with next-level physical comedy skills on That’s So Raven.