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There’s a moment in The Beach Boys, the new documentary about the pioneers of California pop music streaming now on Disney+, in which rock historian and USC professor Josh Kun raises a question that has haunted the band throughout the bulk of its career: “Who are we as artists?”

In the beginning, the core Beach Boys — brothers Brian Wilson, Dennis Wilson, and Carl Wilson, cousin Mike Love, and friend Al Jardine — were a vocal group selling a fantasy about Southern California culture, one where the sun always shined, the girls all wore bikinis,...

Get ready for some fun, fun, fun! Disney+ has released the trailer for its “The Beach Boys” documentary, which is set to stream on the platform May 24.

The trailer features clips from interviews with original band members, rock and roll historian Josh Kun, music star Janelle Monáe and more. The film is a celebration of the band that encapsulated the California dream in their revolutionary pop music. It features never-before-seen footage and all-new interviews with The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, David Marks, Bruce Johnston and other artists including Lindsey Buckingham, Monáe, Ryan Tedder and Don Was. Viewers will also hear from former members Blondie Chaplin and Ricky Fataar, and the late Carl and Dennis Wilson will be featured in archival interviews.

“I’m super happy with the way the documentary turned out, they did an amazing job,” Wilson said in a statement. “It really brought me...

“If the music industry wants to support black lives, labels and platforms can start with amending contracts, distributing royalties, diversifying boardrooms, and retroactively paying back all the black artists, and their families, they have built their empires on.”

This statement, from professor and author Josh Kun, caught fire in influential places after it was posted on Twitter during the music industry’s “Blackout Tuesday” last week. R&b hitmaker Kelis amplified it on Instagram, as did Erykah Badu and John Legend manager Ty Stiklorius.

Since then, Universal Music Group, Sony Music Group,...