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Unsung

2008 – nowShow17 seasons197 episodesTV-14

Documentary
68
GoodGoodWatch score
IMDb9.0
68
GoodGoodWatch score
IMDb9.0

Summary

Unsung is an hour-long music documentary program that premiered on TV One on November 27, 2008. It celebrates the lives and careers of artists or groups sharing their triumphs, their tribulations, and their truth.

Good for

  • Family movie night
  • Friends night
  • Teens

Skip it if

  • You want something to laugh at

Where to watch

Fingerprint

Not for laughs, scares or warmth.

Shows with

Unsung episodes

17 seasons · 197 episodes

  1. S1 E1 Phyllis Hyman, 8.6
  2. S1 E2 The Clark Sisters, 8.3
  3. S1 E3 Donny Hathaway, 8.2
  4. S1 E4 The DeBarge Family, 8.8
  1. S2 E1 Minnie Riperton, 8.8
  2. S2 E2 Melba Moore, 8.9
  3. S2 E3 Shalamar, 8.6
  4. S2 E4 Florence Ballard, 8.5
  5. S2 E5 Teena Marie, 8.4
  6. S2 E6 Bootsy Collins, 9.2
  7. S2 E7 Klymaxx, 8.6
  8. S2 E8 Zapp & Roger, 8.4
  1. S3 E1 Rose Royce, 7.8
  2. S3 E2 Sylvester, 8.1
  3. S3 E3 Uncut, 8.2
  4. S3 E4 Stacy Lattisaw, 8.6
  5. S3 E5 The Bar-Kays, 8.8
  6. S3 E6 Teddy Pendergrass, 8.0
  7. S3 E7 Tammi Terrell, 9.2
  8. S3 E8 Heatwave, 8.8
  9. S3 E9 Musical Youth, 7.7
  10. S3 E10 George Clinton, 9.2
  11. S3 E11 The Fat Boys, 8.3
  12. S3 E12 Angela Winbush, 7.4
  13. S3 E13 Miki Howard, 8.5
  14. S3 E14 The O'Jays, 8.3
  1. S4 E1 Deniece Williams, 8.0
  2. S4 E2 The Spinners, 7.9
  3. S4 E3 Alexander O'Neal & Cherrelle, 7.3
  4. S4 E4 Big Daddy Kane, 7.9
  5. S4 E5 The Ohio Players, 8.1
  6. S4 E6 Evelyn 'Champagne' King, 7.8
  7. S4 E7 Billy Preston, 8.6
  8. S4 E8 The Sylvers, 7.7
  9. S4 E9 Mary Wells, 6.8
  10. S4 E10 Vesta Williams, 8.4
  11. S4 E11 Bobby Womack, 8.5
  12. S4 E12 Atlantic Starr, 8.5
  13. S4 E13 Freddie Jackson, 8.5
  14. S4 E14 Full Force, 8.0
  15. S4 E15 Millie Jackson, 8.8
  16. S4 E16 Ray Parker Jr., 8.9
  1. S5 E1 Sheila E., 8.5
  2. S5 E2 David Ruffin, 9.0
  3. S5 E3 Whodini, 8.4
  4. S5 E4 Sly and the Family Stone, 8.9
  5. S5 E5 Angela Bofill, 8.5
  6. S5 E6 Con Funk Shun, 8.5
  7. S5 E7 Kool Moe Dee, 7.7
  8. S5 E8 Marvelettes, 9.3
  9. S5 E9 Gerald Levert, 8.0
  10. S5 E10 Arrested Development, 8.5
  1. S6 E1 Issac Hayes, 9.1
  2. S6 E2 Midnight Star, 8.6
  3. S6 E3 EPMD, 7.9
  4. S6 E4 Lou Rawls, 8.5
  5. S6 E5 Disco, 8.9
  6. S6 E7 Eddie Kendricks, 8.4
  7. S6 E8 The Whispers, 8.6
  8. S6 E9 Mint Condition, 8.7
  9. S6 E10 Johnny Gill, 8.2
  10. S6 E11 Heavy D, 8.4
  11. S6 E12 Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam, 8.3
  12. S6 E13 The Geto Boys, 7.1
  13. S6 E14 The Delfonics, 7.4
  14. S6 E15 Too $hort, 8.2
  15. S6 E16 CeCe Peniston, 8.3
  1. S7 E1 The Manhattans, 7.6
  2. S7 E2 Gil Scott-Heron, 8.7
  3. S7 E3 Nile Rodgers & Chic, 8.7
  4. S7 E4 Montell Jordan, 8.2
  5. S7 E5 Hi-Five, 8.2
  6. S7 E6 The Emotions, 8.8
  7. S7 E7 Martha Wash, 8.4
  8. S7 E8 Troop, 7.8
  9. S7 E9 Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, 8.6
  10. S7 E10 Wilson Pickett, 8.0
  11. S7 E11 The Chi-Lites, 7.4
  12. S7 E12 Rick James, 8.5
  13. S7 E13 Peaches and Herb, 8.2
  14. S7 E14 Angie Stone, 7.1
  15. S7 E15 Meli'sa Morgan, 7.8
  1. S8 E1 Ike Turner, 8.2
  2. S8 E2 Otis Redding, 8.7
  3. S8 E3 DJ Quik, 8.3
  4. S8 E4 Chuck Brown and Go-Go, 7.3
  5. S8 E6 Xscape, 7.8
  6. S8 E7 Kid 'N Play, 8.2
  7. S8 E8 Al B. Sure!, 7.5
  8. S8 E9 Yarbrough & Peoples, 8.1
  9. S8 E10 The Force MDs, 8.0
  10. S8 E11 YoYo, 7.7
  11. S8 E12 KC and the Sunshine Band, 8.4
  12. S8 E13 Kashif, 8.1
  13. S8 E14 Chanté Moore, 7.9
  14. S8 E15 Lakeside, 8.0
  15. S8 E16 H-Town, 7.6
  16. S8 E17 Jennifer Holliday, 8.2
  17. S8 E18 Nate Dogg, 8.9
  18. S8 E20 Sugarhill Gang, 8.2
  19. S8 E21 Patrice Rushen, 8.5
  20. S8 E22 Donell Jones, 7.5
  21. S8 E23 Johnnie Taylor, 7.7
  1. S9 E1 Kelly Price, 8.0
  2. S9 E2 Next, 7.1
  3. S9 E3 Kwame, 7.4
  4. S9 E4 E-40, 7.4
  5. S9 E5 Monifah, 7.4
  6. S9 E6 Howard Hewett, 7.3
  7. S9 E7 Kurupt, 6.4
  8. S9 E8 Frankie Knuckles & the Roots of House, 8.2
  9. S9 E9 Bobby "Blue" Bland, 7.7
  1. S10 E1 SWV, 8.1
  2. S10 E2 Fat Joe, 7.8
  3. S10 E3 Jon B., 7.3
  4. S10 E4 Lenny Williams, 7.5
  5. S10 E5 Case, 6.6
  6. S10 E6 Dave Hollister, 6.2
  7. S10 E7 After 7, 7.6
  8. S10 E8 James Brown, 9.0
  1. S11 E1 Wyclef Jean, 8.1
  2. S11 E2 Jagged Edge, 7.3
  3. S11 E3 Marvin Sapp, 8.0
  4. S11 E4 Switch, 9.0
  5. S11 E5 The Dramatics, 7.5
  6. S11 E6 Shanice, 8.5
  7. S11 E7 Ice-T, 8.5
  1. S12 E1 Silk, 7.9
  2. S12 E2 The Boys, 8.1
  3. S12 E3 Trick Daddy, 8.4
  4. S12 E4 Blue Magic, 7.7
  5. S12 E5 Deborah Cox, 7.9
  6. S12 E6 Shirley Ceasar, 8.4
  7. S12 E7 Avant, 7.0
  8. S12 E8 Brand Nubian, 7.2
  9. S12 E9 Lost Boyz, 7.4
  1. S13 E1 Mtume, 8.3
  2. S13 E2 Special Ed, 7.3
  3. S13 E3 Digable Planets, 7.2
  4. S13 E6 B.B. King, 8.4
  5. S13 E7 Cheryl Pepsii Riley, 7.6
  6. S13 E8 Will Downing, 7.6
  7. S13 E9 Michel'le, 8.3
  1. S14 E1 Lloyd, 6.7
  2. S14 E2 Adina Howard, 7.5
  3. S14 E3 The Jets, 8.2
  4. S14 E4 Shirley Murdock, 8.1
  5. S14 E5 Crystal Waters, 7.4
  6. S14 E6 Glenn Jones, 7.9
  7. S14 E7 Kenny Lattimore, 7.4
  8. S14 E9 Dru Hill, 7.0
  9. S14 E10 Roxanne Shante, 7.4
  10. S14 E11 Christopher Williams, 7.5
  11. S14 E12 Skyy, 7.9
  12. S14 E13 Shannon, 7.7
  13. S14 E14 Billy Paul, 7.8
  14. S14 E15 Betty Wright, 7.1
  15. S14 E16 Al Jarreau, 8.1
  16. S14 E17 Goodie Mob, 7.4
  1. S15 E1 Morris Day, 6.8
  2. S15 E2 Leela James, 7.2
  3. S15 E5 Mystikal, 6.8
  4. S15 E6 The Story of Syleena Johnson, 7.6
  1. S16 E3 Soul for Real, 6.6
  2. S16 E7 PM Dawn, 7.2
  3. S16 E8 Das EFX, 7.3
  4. S16 E11 Unsung Presents: The Jazz Decade 1959-1969, 8.1
  5. S16 E12 Unsung Presents: The Rise of Neo Soul, 8.0
  6. S16 E16 Jean Carne, 7.4

Cast

16 of 16 · most episodes first

Facts

November 30, 2008 · May 21, 2023 · Still running

First aired
November 30, 2008
Latest episode
May 21, 2023
Status
Still running
Length
17 seasons · 197 episodes
Age rating
TV-14
Content
Strong Language, Drug Use, Violence
Genres
Documentary
Original language
English
Made in
United States
Available in
5 countries

Tropes

Sibling Team, Gospel Music, We Were Your Team +9

Q&A

7 questions, like "Where can I stream Unsung?"

Questions about Unsung

Quick answers from GoodWatch data.

Where can I stream Unsung?

PlexPhiloThe RokuTubi TV

In the United States, Unsung streams on Philo, and it is free with ads on Plex, The Roku, and Tubi TV. It also streams in 4 other countries.

Is Unsung worth watching?

68
GoodGoodWatch score

Mostly, it's well received, with a GoodWatch score of 68 (IMDb 9). Season 15 is the weak spot, with an IMDb average of 7.1 against 8.7 for the best season.

Which season of Unsung is best?

Season 2, with an IMDb average of 8.7. Season 15 is the weakest at 7.1. The highest-rated episode is Marvelettes (season 5, episode 8) at 9.3, and the lowest is Dave Hollister (season 10, episode 6) at 6.2.

Is Unsung okay for kids?

TV-14Strong languageDrug useViolence

Yes: it's rated TV-14 in the United States for strong language, drug use, and violence, and the viewing guide lists it for family nights.

How long does it take to watch Unsung?

197 h

About 197 hours: 197 episodes in 17 seasons of about 60 minutes each since 2008, and it's still in production.

Is Unsung plot-driven or character-driven?

CharactersPlot

Mostly character-driven: it leans on pathos (9 of 10) and character depth (8 of 10) more than on its plot.

What tropes does Unsung use?

Sibling TeamGospel MusicWe Were Your TeamWe Used to Be FriendsPhyllis HymanMillie JacksonXscapeDonna SummerFormula-Breaking EpisodeSorrowful StutterHeavy DNew Editionand 12 more

TV Tropes lists 24 tropes for it, including Sibling Team, Gospel Music, and We Were Your Team.