about the colonization of Hawaii and told from an Indigenous point of view, was nearing a deal with Apple TV+. Per Pandian, talent insisted on the dialogue being entirely in Native Hawaiian. “But [Apple TV+] is run on the content side by straight white men,” Pandian says. “And four straight white men refused the idea.” The deal was coming down to the wire. On Thursday, Pandian continues, talent was ready to walk away, with Apple refusing to agree.
best sellers, speaks strikingly of her growth over her five years in the industry. “I don’t look left, I don’t look right—I look atbecause I’m told he’s paid the most,” she says. “We’re so used to having to walk into something and also be Martin Luther King, or also beThe next generation is a central topic at Amplify—with Shahidi, Reid, andamong the many younger stars who speak openly and impactfully about fighting for more in the years to come.
Adeyemi seemed to be giving voice to what many others were feeling there in Ojai. You sense frustration on this stage as to how much still needs to be done, how much has stalled. There’s pain and grief, to be sure. But there’s anger too, bubbling just underneath—understandably. Adeyemi has arrived in Ojai knowing what she wants to say and how she wants to say it. “Be stubborn, be loud, be annoying. Who gives a fuck?” she says on the panel. “It’s not about the people you’re working with. It’s about the millions of people who need these stories to survive.” She’s then asked what she’s most looking forward to as an artist: “Winning. I want to win so hard and so big in so many different mediums—I want to do this like Jordan. That’s what I’m hopeful for.