With proclamations such as, “I am the bronze Liberace!,” “If God gave it to you, show it to the world!” and a flippant, “Shut up!,” Little Richard undoubtedly commanded attention.
But beyond the kohl-lined eyes, mirror ball suits and shaded cheekbones, the musician born Richard Penniman in Macon, Georgia, was complicated, contradictory and an originator of much more than “Tutti Frutti.”
The documentary “Little Richard: I Am Everything,” available Friday on most streaming platforms after opening at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, explores how the wild-eyed piano showman struggled with his identity as a Black, queer man performing in the 1950s and how his music inadvertently guided the careers of artists ranging from The Rolling Stones to Culture Club.
Directed by Lisa Cortés (“All In: The Fight For Democracy,” “The Apollo”), “I Am Everything” illuminates a legend.
Here are some highlights.
Little Richard’s music popularized by Elvis Presley, Pat Boone
During the peak of Little Richard’s domination in the mid-to-late-‘50s, the now-classics “Tutti Frutti,” “Long Tall Sally,” “Rip It Up,” “Ready Teddy” and “Lucille” were considered “race music” and popularized primarily on R&B radio stations.
