‘Waiting to Exhale’ to ‘Set It Off’: At these Black film screenings, the soundtrack reigns

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We remember some movies for their clever stories, memorable lines, and characters we can’t forget. But sometimes, it’s the music that truly makes a film stick with us.

The impact of Forest Whitaker’s 1995 film, “Waiting to Exhale,” was clear at a recent showing hosted by Cult Classics Cinema at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. Around 80 people in the audience visibly connected with the movie, moving to the music and singing along to hits from the soundtrack, like Brandy’s “Sittin’ Up in my Room,” Mary J. Blige’s “Not Gon’ Cry,” and Toni Braxton’s “Let It Flow.”

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The Black cinematic community centering soundtracks

During a scene in the movie where Whitney Houston’s character, Savannah, reunites with her former lover, her song “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” began to play. The audience naturally joined in, singing along to the lyrics, “Everyone falls in love sometime / Sometimes it’s wrong, and sometimes it’s right.”

Attendee Deonna Tillman, 33, from Miracle Mile, described the event as a nostalgic trip back to ’90s R&B. She even listened to a Babyface album on the way to get in the mood. ‘It also includes legends like Patti LaBelle and Aretha Franklin,’ she added. ‘It’s truly iconic.’

Cult Classics Cinema is a unique event series that combines movie screenings with listening parties, all focused on celebrating iconic Black films and their soundtracks. Each month, founder Diamora Hunt – known as DJ Rosegawd – shows a classic movie like “The Wiz,” “The Wood,” “Set It Off,” or “Love Jones,” and then guests can enjoy the full soundtrack afterward. Recently, the series celebrated the 30th anniversary of the film “Waiting to Exhale,” starring Whitney Houston, Angela Bassett, Lela Rochon, and Loretta Devine, with a screening and listening session.

Los Angeles is known for its nightly movie screenings at places like Quentin Tarantino’s Vista Theater, the New Beverly, and the TCL Chinese Theatre, plus events like Rooftop Cinema and Cinespia. But Cult Classics Cinema is different – it creates a unique, welcoming community where people can celebrate films, their music, and especially stories about Black experiences.

Hunt, 36, explains she wants the experience to feel as comfortable and social as hanging out with friends in her living room. She’s even developed a habit of watching music videos from the soundtrack after a movie, feeling that the videos and films work together to create a richer, more immersive world.

For Hunt, who’s been DJing for nearly a decade, everything always comes back to the music.

When she wasn’t working her two jobs – one in insurance and one at a call center – she spent her days off during the COVID lockdown doing long live DJ sets on Twitch, broadcasting from her bedroom. Every Saturday, she’d focus on a different artist, mostly women, playing all of their songs and sharing fun facts about their careers. Some of the artists she highlighted included Missy Elliott, Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, and Drake.

In 2022, Hunt started hosting ‘Club Renaissance,’ a popular dance party in Los Angeles featuring Beyoncé’s album ‘Renaissance’ played from beginning to end. The parties quickly became a hit, forcing her to move to a bigger location to handle the growing crowds, sometimes reaching 1,200 people. At one event, rapper Doechii performed “Heated” alongside DJ Miss Milan. Even Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowles, shared a video recap of the event on Instagram, saying it was sent by Jay-Z.

After successfully running the event in Los Angeles and New York, Hunt began to consider if she could replicate the experience with other popular albums. She launched the ‘Cult Classics’ party through her company, Ladera Hearts, in February 2023, starting with Brandy’s ‘Full Moon’ album. Fittingly, the debut party was held on a full moon night at the Blind Barber in Highland Park.

Let me tell you, this woman knows how to throw a party! She’s been hosting these incredible dedication nights, playing entire albums – think Usher’s ‘Confessions,’ Janet Jackson’s ‘The Velvet Rope,’ even 50 Cent’s ‘Get Rich or Die Tryin” and classics from Aaliyah and Mariah Carey. I saw a clip online of one of these parties, and it looked amazing. Apparently, Mariah Carey herself saw it too, because she commented ‘invite me next time’ with a couple of kissy faces! Honestly, I’m officially requesting an invite myself – these sound like the parties to be at.

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Want a spot in L.A. to enjoy your favorite records and connect with fellow music fans? Check out The Record Club – it’s a great place to listen to music on a high-quality sound system.

Hunt believes people enjoyed the event, even if they hadn’t heard the album before, because being around enthusiastic fans is contagious. She explains that it allows people to experience the music in a fresh and engaging way.

She thought about whether she could recreate that emotional experience by watching her beloved movies and listening to their music.

In November 2024, Hunt launched Cult Classics Cinema with a screening of the 1992 film “Boomerang,” featuring Eddie Murphy, Halle Berry, Chris Rock, and Robin Givens, at a neighborhood bar. During the event, she shared interesting facts about the movie’s soundtrack, including how Toni Braxton’s song “Love Shoulda Brought You Home” helped launch her music career.

Starting in January 2025, she began hosting her movie nights at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. Shortly before Thanksgiving, she screened the film “Soul Food” and invited stars Vivica A. Fox, Brandon Hammond, and Morgan Méchelle to join a discussion led by Randy C. Bonds. After the discussion, guests enjoyed a family-style dinner with the cast.

Guests arrived at a recent screening of “Waiting to Exhale” by walking down a red carpet. They received a custom button featuring scenes from the movie and then enjoyed themed cocktails—each named after one of the four main characters—along with snacks like popcorn, empanadas, or candy. While waiting to order, attendees could also browse interesting facts about the film and its soundtrack.

Let me tell you, the audience was fully engaged with this movie. It wasn’t just polite chuckles, either – people were genuinely roaring with laughter, yelling advice at the characters like they could actually hear them – I heard a lot of ‘Don’t do it!’ – and even reciting along with the dialogue. There was one line, ‘Get yo s— and get out!’ that the whole theater seemed to know by heart. It was a truly interactive experience.

Tillman, a frequent moviegoer, notes that screenings focused on Black filmmakers and stories are rare, making Cult Classics Cinema particularly valuable to her.

Movies

The show became surprisingly popular – a funny and heartfelt story following four Black women as they navigate love, work, and finding happiness.

Tillman points out that while Los Angeles has a large community of Black film lovers, it’s surprisingly difficult to find and watch classic Black films. He’s particularly annoyed that many of these important movies aren’t available on popular streaming services.

Felisha Fowlkes, 34, often goes to Cult Classics Cinema events by herself. She explains that the movie soundtracks bring back strong memories. “Hearing the songs makes you relive the scenes and the emotions,” she says, “and the music lets you fully experience those feelings again.”

After the two-hour film finished, one lucky audience member won a raffle prize: a DVD copy of “Waiting to Exhale” and a DVD player to watch it with.

I remember watching the “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” video play on the big screen – the lyrics were scrolling across the bottom, which was cool. Then Hunt moved the microphone to the center of the stage, like he was inviting anyone in the crowd to join in if they felt like singing along.

Nobody accepted her invitation. It’s hard to imagine anyone wanting to follow such a phenomenal singer like Whitney Houston! Despite that, the audience kept the atmosphere lively, singing along and enjoying the music from their comfortable seats.

It felt, just as Hunt envisioned, like being in a living room with all your friends.

Cult Classics Cinema is showing “Boomerang” this Saturday, “A Thin Line Between Love and Hate” on February 15th, and “B.A.P.S.” on March 14th. All screenings will be at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. Tickets are available starting at $15, plus taxes and fees.

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2026-01-23 14:03