Forever for the Culture: Notes from the New Black Digital Arts Renaissance
Steven Underwood
Jan 2026 · Sold by Beacon Press
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240
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About this ebook
THE CURATORS OF CULTURE: Celebrate Black digital art in this essay collection revealing how Black artists have shaped everything from TikTok dances to viral memes
Steven Underwood digs into the current Black digital arts movement that has shaped popular culture for the last decade. He connects this current space to historical influences, speaking to a “legacy of audacity and daring that presented us with the opportunity to redirect the conversations on Blackness back on its center. Back to Black people.” Written as a collection of thought-provoking essays pulling in social commentary, interviews, popular culture, and deep research, Underwood taps into a topic that is incredibly relevant but often unknown.
The nature of the internet is so ephemeral that sometimes we forget when we do something worth celebrating. For Black people particularly, that’s unforgiveable. Digital Black art has become increasingly more outspoken, introspective, and genre-defining. But it’s also vulnerable. Original phrases, tweets, dances, songs, and other content are often taken from a Black artist and attributed to a white influencer. And Black creators are paid less for their work, though their engagement is often higher than that of their white peers. There is also the added risk of backlash and hate that comes with publicly existing online. As an award-winning writer with a popular online presence, Underwood is no stranger to the experiences of Black digital artists. Using his own personal stories, he highlights the beauty, vulnerability, and innovation of the Black digital arts movement.
Shining a light on the curators of our culture, Forever for the Culture narratively follows the construction of a new Black art movement and how creators have defined a community when that community does not have a physical space.
Steven Underwood digs into the current Black digital arts movement that has shaped popular culture for the last decade. He connects this current space to historical influences, speaking to a “legacy of audacity and daring that presented us with the opportunity to redirect the conversations on Blackness back on its center. Back to Black people.” Written as a collection of thought-provoking essays pulling in social commentary, interviews, popular culture, and deep research, Underwood taps into a topic that is incredibly relevant but often unknown.
The nature of the internet is so ephemeral that sometimes we forget when we do something worth celebrating. For Black people particularly, that’s unforgiveable. Digital Black art has become increasingly more outspoken, introspective, and genre-defining. But it’s also vulnerable. Original phrases, tweets, dances, songs, and other content are often taken from a Black artist and attributed to a white influencer. And Black creators are paid less for their work, though their engagement is often higher than that of their white peers. There is also the added risk of backlash and hate that comes with publicly existing online. As an award-winning writer with a popular online presence, Underwood is no stranger to the experiences of Black digital artists. Using his own personal stories, he highlights the beauty, vulnerability, and innovation of the Black digital arts movement.
Shining a light on the curators of our culture, Forever for the Culture narratively follows the construction of a new Black art movement and how creators have defined a community when that community does not have a physical space.
THE CURATORS OF CULTURE: Celebrate Black digital art in this essay collection revealing how Black artists have shaped everything from TikTok dances to viral memes
Steven Underwood digs into the current Black digital arts movement that has shaped popular culture for the last decade. He connects t...
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About the author
Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, Steven Underwood is an award-winning writer with a penchant for unveiling magic in the hypercritical. Honest to his experiences, Underwood has published essays on Blackness and identity. Steven was a finalist for Le Maison Baldwin’s Writers-in-Residence Program. He has no dogs or cats, but two nieces and a nephew who swear they are smarter than him. His non-fiction work has been published in numerous outlets, including Oprah, NPR, Essence, MTV News, Blavity, NewNowNext, BET, GQ, Out Magazine, AfroPunk, Complex, Refinery29, Them, and many, many more. He currently resides in Los Angeles.
Hailing from Columbus, Ohio, Steven Underwood is an award-winning writer with a penchant for unveiling magic in the hypercritical. Honest to his experiences, Underwood has published essays on Blackness and identity. Steven was a finalist for Le Maison Baldwin’s Writers-in-Residence Program. He ha...
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