Yeah that's one way of looking at it. I think the point of what they,'re showing here is how the masses are brainwashed and only do something because everybody else does it. Kinda like Dr. Seuss's stretches on beaches.
I’ll give u the lion, but the Tinman was white. U can tell from the illustrations in the book that explains his origin. What’s wrong? Don’t like people calling out cultural appropriation?
I saw this movie as a kid and I had no idea of the deepness in this scene. The color scheme of the African flag, the pyramids, the eye of rah and the beautiful black people walking like Egyptians. This is the first black conscious movie ever made if you look at it closer!
The dancer who jumps on the piano and shakes his thang was my HS dance teacher in the 80s. Rest in Power, Mr. John Goring! You were a masterful dance instructor and will be truly missed.
They hired every Black Top Model and Dancers for this production. Look closely, you will see Iman, Naomi Sims , Pat Cleveland, Sterling Saint Jacques . Alva Chinn, Mounia..etc At the time, Grace Jones was not available. She was in Europe promoting her 1977 album "Portfolio"
@@m.woodsrobinson9244 as i recall, many of the costumes were done in silver to reflect the colors of the lights. The feather boa or fur or feather might be changed but the costume was not. Of course, not all costumes - many are suede, velvet - matte finishes that can't be altered enough by coloring lights. Remembering the WTC on this day. HE'S THE WIZ!
They also hired top fashion designers to design the costumes for this sequence. Oscar de la Renta, Bill Blass, Mary McFadden, Ralph Lauren, Halston, Norma Kamali, Stephen Burrows, Scott Barrie, Zoran, Ronald Kolodzie, Fernando Sanchez and furriers Alixandre and Ben Kahn dressed four hundred black dancers (each of whom had a separate costume in each of the three featured colors). So, there were a total of 1200 costumes created for this sequence.
I'm not surprised this movie did bad in the 70's! An all black cast showing their black excellence... they didn't want to see that🤦🏾♀️ This movie is amazing
A certified CLASSIC of ALL AGES!! A musical, theatrical, fashion and art MASTERPIECE!! CHILE THIS SCREAMS ORIGINALZZZZZZZZ! GOD STATUS MASTERPIECE! Yes I'm extra lol this is my favorite scene in the entire movie plus the scene when they went thru the "whore" house lol that was a message in and of itself! This movie deserved all the awards!🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
I like how all the colors have a unique melody to it. When the colors change the song changes. Green is calm and charming Red is enticing and fiery Gold is cheery and flashy Truly a work of art.
@@Blue_skyes993 And also the topography of Oz; red is the color of the Quadling Country in the South, where Glinda rules, and gold (or yellow) is the color of the Winkie Country, where the Tin Woodman took over as ruler after the Wicked Witch was melted.
I ain't even gonna lie. The green version bops harder than red and gold in my opinion. Green had me jumping out of my seat dancing. Probably because I'm into fast jazz.
This scene is literally legendary black excellence at its finest. Not only did they did they get Quincy Jones on the piano…they have literally every black top model and dancer in here….AND TO DO IT IN FRONT OF THE TWIN TOWERS….it just leaves me amazed every time I watch it….just iconic wish I could’ve saw this in person I would’ve passed out.
Peep the colors of Africa. And how especially at the end of the gold sequence, their strut resembles the poses and colors of Egyptian royalty. They knew what they were doing. 💖💖💖💖
Africa is a CONTINENT. Egypt is one country idiot. All of us weren't from there and other African countries were far superior. Your Colorism and anti blackness is showing.
@@riveraspen2745 Unless that's your real name, that's disrespectful asf to the late Sharon Tate because I'm sure she would never call anyone she didn't know out of their name. That's was out of line and bogus asf. Watch it. You DO NOT know me. Calm it, bring it all the way down, and take whatever anger you have within your damn self to the alter because I am NOT the one.
Sharon Tate Egypt is still a part of black culture and Egyptian royalty is a big part of black history so what’s wrong with that comment? Pyramids, check, the strut, check. Nothing they said was incorrect??
Tasteless Cakes No such thing as “black” culture smh🤦🏾♂️. You can’t have a culture based on a color lol it’s by what’s your race is, and black is not a race. And almost all of “blacks” in America don’t descend from kemet or Africa in general. We been here in America before Columbus
@@tastelesscakes I'm well aware HOWEVER AFRICA IS A CONTINENT WITH COUNTRIES that were more beautiful and evolved that Egypt yet the anti blackness from blacks that whites feed them shows every day. Bye.
Need to put this back in Theatres. The whole theme revolves around Dorothy's coming of age and what she witnessed stepping out into the real world. Miss One is a bag lady, the Munchkins are schoolyard graffiti, the scarecrow came from a cornfield in an abandoned lot back when New York was destitute and being burnt down for insurance fraud. The Emerald City Sequence seems to be that one little piece of joy people found in the Disco scene and following the latest fashion trends. I wish this movie could be openly available to EVERYONE.
THIS! There's so much symbolism in this sequence. The Red, Yellow and Green of New York stop lights. The fast-paced trends of fashion and society. The struggle of giving up food to look good. The peer pressure of society in a big city to stay "on trend". The subway scenes! I could write a whole dissertation on how symbolic and ahead of its time this song is. It is my all time favorite musical piece!
A number of people think The Wiz is just a black version of The Wizard of Oz, but it has its own meaning. The part where Dorothy helps The Scarecrow off the pole and he asks, “You mean all this time…the only thing keeping me on that pole…was those crows?” to have her reply, “It’s because you believed what they told you,” is a very profound scene to me. No matter who you are, there are people who try to mock you and tear you down because they’re unhappy with their own position (We later see the crows working at the sweatshop). There’s also Dorothy’s exchange with “The Wiz” before she leaves for home. She could have chosen not to give him the time of day after everything that happened, but instead she gave him some advice. Also, the songs are great.
Don't forget that the underlying message is that the unqualified, detached voice of the Wiz is dictating what everyone should like and feel. No one in this scene is acting independently, or freely they are being controlled by the Wiz.
@@Zenguy89 in this scene they're in some type of hypnosis..singing about superficial bullshit.. Dorothy was walking thru abandoned n half demolished, empty neighborhoods and everyone is in the elemarld city.. "Black people rather buy material stuff than fix their neighborhoods."
...i cannot begin to say how we stomped and screamed and cried...when we saw this when it as first shown in the theater...we had NEVER...seen black people like this before...every major designer in NYC...designed these costumes...it was just the ultimate statement of BLACK BEAUTY...on every level...i could watch this a thousand times and never get bored...it is an excellent movie...as revealing what a movie could be as creating representative images of what black people ...TRULY ARE...as ARTISTS...
@@MaskedMan66 .....i must say there were a lot of people did NOT like the movie...and really feel that DIANA...STOLE the movie from Stephanie Mills who killed the lead of the WIZ on Broadway....also the idea that the Wizard of Oz ...as a movie should not be tampered with ....PERIOD...especially by black people that was mostly...older people who were ambivalent about the black version...and Diana....however young people loved the movie...and especially this scene...black people had never been presented as beautiful to this caliber before...and so many ...
@@MaskedMan66 ....smile....you have a point...but they really have no idea of the subtext of how we had never had such stylish....dynamic representation....
@@corneliuswashington-gp1we With you all the way on that one! Looking through this comments page, so many black people are praising this sequence to the skies. I don't blame them one bit. 🙂
@@MaskedMan66 ....we had just NEVER....seen ourselves that way before....GROWN MEN....were OPENLY CRYING....we just were not ready...nothing in our lives had ever prepared us for THIS....
....when we saw it at the theater when it 1st came out....we screamed and stomped and hollared....some people broke down crying....we had never seen ourselves so regal before.....never before this.....
Korvus the original was created from a book so technically it wasn’t from scratch. To downplay this sequence just shows you’re a hater. This sequence was nice and impressive especially with the usage of color. To not even give a little credit just sounds like you’re a hater.
Filmed on the outdoor plaza of the Twin Towers. I loved going to the plaza just to visualize what it must have been like to film this sequence there. Long live the Twin Towers.
I have never seen a more brilliant, thoughtful and timeless critique of the contemporary culture of distraction than this scene! Everything the Wiz does is a tactic to delay Dorothy and her crew from getting to him and this fashion/dance sequence is is his strongest attempt. The people are so busy trying to keep up with his trends that no one is focused on anything else.
I agree. Everything in 'The Wiz' was symbolic of urban life from drug dens to graffiti. This scene, as beautifully as it was done, was about materialism and ostentatiousness, and even intra-racial classism. It's a social statement that goes back generations in Black culture.
“If your not seen in green , you better be wearing jade!” And. “You’ve got to be wearing gold, the 24 karat kind, and once you shine it up , it should ought to make you blind OWWW” are my favorite lines from this sequence ! I can’t choose which is my favorite but it’s definitely between Green & Gold for sure
...for me...it was GOLD...the MOVEMENT...THE FRENZY....THE DRAMA.....THE ATTITUDE....and the LOOK...that QUINCY JONES ..the gent playing the GOLD PIANO>>>WITH THE GOLD DUST IN HIS AFRO>>>the look he gives over his shoulder to the CAMERA...i saw the movie when it first hit the theaters...we in the audience...we had NEVER...seen black people like THAT...we were going INSANE...literally...you are TRULY SEEING A MOMENT IN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY...
This just shows that if black people of pure talent comes together, we can make magic and dominate this business.. we've always been a threat to our suppressors from day one
Hands down this is THE MOST COOL AND FASHIONABLE scene in American Cinema and possibly the greatest record of such in All of Western Civilization 😩😩😔💅🏽💃🏽🕺🏽
The Wiz is what you get when black people truly stick together. We can easily outclass in whatever we do when we're connected by love in both ourselves and for each other 💯
I just remember sitting in a theater in awe...Green was so smooth...Red was so "Flossy" and Gold the Celebration..IJS I wanted to grow up and Marry the Lady in the Red Rolls...Owwwww Oww Owww Owww Owww Ahhh!
Omg, you saw this in theaters??!! 😤😲 Lucky. I wish I could've seen this, Jaws, and Halloween when they were originally in theaters. I was so born in the wrong decade 😔
@@kidnplay3978 ...i saw it in the theater...we went crazy...there were people literally crying...we had never seen black people so regal...and stylish on a movie screen like that...ever before...the top designers of NYC designed all the costumes and the biggest models in the business were mixed in with the dancers.....
EMERALD CITY GREEN: I want to be seen green Wouldn't be caught dead, red 'Cause if you are seen green It means you got mean bread You've got to be seen green To show that you're stuff's layed If you're not seen green You better be wearing jade Oh, you've got to be seen green Don't tell them your cupboard's bare That you gave up one week's feed To pay for your colored hair Oh, oh, oh AN ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE GREAT POWERFUL OZ: I thought it over and green is dead 'Till I change my mind, the color is red EMERALD CITY RED: I wouldn't be seen green Ooo! Oo! Oo! Ah! Ah! I wouldn't be caught dead And if I'm caught at all Then catch me in dead, red Ooo! You've got to be dead red You've got to be real hot So throw away those green gems And wear rubies on your yacht You've got to be dead, red You've got to have flash and flair And if you're not seen red Then you shouldn't be seen nowhere Ah! How quickly fashion goes down the drain. Last week when you all was wearin' pink Already for me red was old. The ultimate brick is gold. That's the new color, children EMERALD CITY GOLD: Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold You got to be seen gold Watch out for the new kind You got to have old gold Like some from a gold mine You got to be wearin' gold The twenty four carat kind And once you've shined it up It should ought to make you blind, ah! You got to be seen in gold To show that you're super slick It helps to pay tips and tolls It's the ultimate yellow brick It's the ultimate Gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Golden gold Gold, gold, gold, gold Gold!
@@khalilnelson1288 ....when he looks back at the camera....looking like the CAT....that caught the CANARY....with the GOLD DUST IN HIS AFRO...truly it was a moment in AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY....
I was OBSESSED by this scene from first viewing. It's just effortlessly cool. It represents all that is great about black culture. Music, style, togetherness, rhythm. It's visually and musically stunning.
Another interesting little factoid was that they only had one day to shoot this scene so it had to be perfect in one go! And what a location for the Emerald City, The World Trade Center no less.
Seeing the twin towers in their glory days. A time where America was at a peak in prosperity. Movie beautifully done with the colors of Africa in each theme.
According to the production notes on the Wiz DVD, this amazing scene involved three hundred and fifty performers, three hundred and eighty-five crew members, and over one thousand costumes provided by thirteen of the most well-known clothing designers in the business. Just three of the names the DVD mentions are Bill Blass, Ralph Lauren, and Oscar de la Renta.
This movie is underrated and under appreciated. It is a true work of art expressing black liberation which inspires and lifts up everyone. It was really ahead of its time. Class act all around.
Its main failing was in being too serious as opposed to the more jokey stage version. If everything in the film had measured up to this sequence and been more light-hearted, it might have done better. But for what it is, it is a masterpiece all the same, and I've loved it since I saw it in the theaters as a kid.
@Mind Fucka I'm a black man. Nobody invented me. The proposal was a paradise for black Americans, which, as far as I know, still has yet to be created. We should create one.
As a musician and artist myself, I'm impressed with the amount of work that must have gone into this. The music is good, the bass playing is insane, and the visuals are striking. Michael Jackson gave an underrated performance as The Scarecrow IMO.
The word underrated gets thrown around alot on TH-cam and I'm beginning to think people don't know what it means... underrated by who? I don't know of anyone who's seen the film and dint live MJ's performance. And he was well reviewed by the critics.
Today so much of this would be digital. You really gotta admire the massive set, the costume designs, and all of the performers acting together en mass.
This was one of the last of the truly epic, old-fashioned Hollywood musicals. I mean, even then there were ways of making a shoot like this "easier," but they wanted to do it big.
Totally didn’t notice this until I rewatched it for the idk 50th time I’m 34 btw I peeped it too like wait that sounds familiar I didn’t notice it before loo
I buy this movie so many times and wear it out. its a classic, one of the most creative movies of its time without CGI, give a black man a budget and creative freedom and you got The Wiz- it is what it is
“And if you’re not seen in red, then you shouldn’t be seen NOWHERE!!”❤ I love love love this movie. I’m 22 now but this has been one of my favorite movies since I was a kid. And this scene always stood out to me. The fashion, the beauty, the elegance… Something about this scene always makes me so proud to be a black woman.
Divisions of class in the 1970s is a theme I see in this scene. The working class looking into the world of high society in New York. "How does it feel to be one of the beautiful people?"
Gold was always my favorite as a child and still remains that way. The instrumentation captures the color gold so wonderfully! I used to think I was cool for knowing Quincy was on the piano...apparently, everyone knew😒😂 Good memories from one of my all-time favorite movies!
I knew it was him because I'd seen him on T.V., but there are some folks right here on this page who came to that realization years after they'd seen the movie. So don't feel so bad! 🙂
This is one of my favorite scenes in any musical I've scene in my lifetime. This is a real extravaganza, and a showcase for late 70s high-end fashions. It makes Wakanda look like Sanford and Son! And from a cinema history standpoint, you will never see a more opulent expression of Black Beauty than in this moment.
....he could NEVER....he does not have the RANGE....or the ELEGANCE...the director of the film JOEL SCHUMACHER....worked for AMERICAN VOGUE for many years as a STYLIST... before he became a director...he LOANED ....the fashion genius HALSTON... the seed money that began HIS CAREER...he also discovered the actress ...JULIA ROBERTS...among many other stunning talented people....his pedigree is UNMATCHED...as an all around ARTIST....
Green- for the Land of Africa
Red - for the blood of the people
Gold - for the gold and riches of the Land
Yeah that's one way of looking at it. I think the point of what they,'re showing here is how the masses are brainwashed and only do something because everybody else does it. Kinda like Dr. Seuss's stretches on beaches.
SYMBOLIC
Dear Black People: Our entire culture is represented in this movie right here. Black excellence.
IndigoMoon7 YES MA'AM IT IS!!!
so true real black people no niggas!
All wrapped up in a cultural appropriated story
Benjamin Yates I didn’t know they specified the race of a tin man and lion in the book
I’ll give u the lion, but the Tinman was white. U can tell from the illustrations in the book that explains his origin. What’s wrong? Don’t like people calling out cultural appropriation?
I saw this movie as a kid and I had no idea of the deepness in this scene. The color scheme of the African flag, the pyramids, the eye of rah and the beautiful black people walking like Egyptians. This is the first black conscious movie ever made if you look at it closer!
I don't know if its the first but it is a deep movie.
I'm 25 and have been obsessed with this movie my whole life, but never thought of that for some reason. Thank you!!!!!
Say that!!!!!
Wow never looked at that way.. lts so clear! Thanks for that lol
Wow!
Your comment is DEAD ON!
I've got CHILLS over here!
Thank you!
The dancer who jumps on the piano and shakes his thang was my HS dance teacher in the 80s. Rest in Power, Mr. John Goring! You were a masterful dance instructor and will be truly missed.
Wow!!!
I noticed him a few shots. He was giving us shimmy-shakin LIFE! 🤩🥰 RIP
What a legacy!
Wow!
Wow. That's heavy.
If you're not seen green..you better be wearing jade!!!
One of the few times I was happy my name is Jade lol
My name is jade
@@doodoojuice7923 same
Please don’t wear me. Im only 5’5
We been spitting bars since the beginning of time. This film really showcases the beautiful things we black people Can do
They hired every Black Top Model and Dancers for this production. Look closely, you will see Iman, Naomi Sims
, Pat Cleveland, Sterling Saint Jacques
. Alva Chinn, Mounia..etc At the time, Grace Jones was not available. She was in Europe promoting her 1977 album "Portfolio"
design17 I had no idea. That’s fire.
All of the top New York designers made costumes for that sequence, too. And each costume was made in each color! Top notch stuff!
@@m.woodsrobinson9244 as i recall, many of the costumes were done in silver to reflect the colors of the lights. The feather boa or fur or feather might be changed but the costume was not. Of course, not all costumes - many are suede, velvet - matte finishes that can't be altered enough by coloring lights. Remembering the WTC on this day. HE'S THE WIZ!
They also hired top fashion designers to design the costumes for this sequence.
Oscar de la Renta, Bill Blass, Mary McFadden, Ralph Lauren, Halston, Norma Kamali, Stephen Burrows, Scott Barrie, Zoran, Ronald Kolodzie, Fernando Sanchez and furriers Alixandre and Ben Kahn dressed four hundred black dancers (each of whom had a separate costume in each of the three featured colors).
So, there were a total of 1200 costumes created for this sequence.
My uncle, Stephen Burrows designed a lot of the clothes here as well
“Throw away....those Green Gems....and wear Rubies, on your Yacht!”
Favorite line out of the whole number
My sisters used to die laughing to that line
That me and my siblings’ favorite part 😂
I use to laugh so hard but now that I’m older that line is deep.🤎
My Fav Line Lol!
This scene made me love this movie. The way the dancers STRUT across the floor, so classy!
I wouldn't be caught dead green
Same here
Same!!!!!
Yessss....omg, me too!!!
Same here!!! Made me pursue dance...
Black EXCELLENCE at its finest! Pay attention!!!! STEPPING!
Yesss!!!
Yes. When I think of black excellence I literately hear this. It’s just so glamorous and soulful.
Ikr
INDEED!!!!
@@lrs1519 💯💯
This choreography is flawless, damn!
Exactly
Zach DeHart Louis Johnson was a BEAST!!! Great Choreographer
Especially considering all the extras
The Alvin Ailey dancers...they will be called on once again for Coming To America!!!
I'm not surprised this movie did bad in the 70's! An all black cast showing their black excellence... they didn't want to see that🤦🏾♀️ This movie is amazing
Bethann Hardison is in there strutting too
@@glencro ....just before IMAN....
A certified CLASSIC of ALL AGES!! A musical, theatrical, fashion and art MASTERPIECE!! CHILE THIS SCREAMS ORIGINALZZZZZZZZ! GOD STATUS MASTERPIECE! Yes I'm extra lol this is my favorite scene in the entire movie plus the scene when they went thru the "whore" house lol that was a message in and of itself! This movie deserved all the awards!🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
Yeah! Yet everyone is all hyped up by Black Panther! Hollywood is so full of hypocrisy!
@@andrewtodaro2874 let's not forget the controversial trailers for The Little Mermaid live-action remake starring Halle Bailey
I like how all the colors have a unique melody to it. When the colors change the song changes.
Green is calm and charming
Red is enticing and fiery
Gold is cheery and flashy
Truly a work of art.
YES INDEED
There also the colors of stop light too..
Most of those colors are apart of Africa flags😊
Indeed
@@Blue_skyes993 And also the topography of Oz; red is the color of the Quadling Country in the South, where Glinda rules, and gold (or yellow) is the color of the Winkie Country, where the Tin Woodman took over as ruler after the Wicked Witch was melted.
"That's the new color children, *Hit It."*
And is!
I ain't even gonna lie. The green version bops harder than red and gold in my opinion. Green had me jumping out of my seat dancing. Probably because I'm into fast jazz.
Yeah, and it had that lil Brazilian jazz feel underneath the horns!! Green is my favorite too
Exactly! 💚💚
It's the green for me too!
Honestly same here. there's something about how green started off that made me love it even more.
That baseline is KILLER!! And them HORNS 🔥
This scene is literally legendary black excellence at its finest. Not only did they did they get Quincy Jones on the piano…they have literally every black top model and dancer in here….AND TO DO IT IN FRONT OF THE TWIN TOWERS….it just leaves me amazed every time I watch it….just iconic wish I could’ve saw this in person I would’ve passed out.
...GRACE JONES....was in PARIS....promoting her 1st album...PAT CLEVELAND....was booted off of the set...by ...guess who...
@@CuirPhotodotNet No idea, who?
@@CuirPhotodotNet you still haven’t said who
@@platedude5022 .....MISS ROSS.....
@@CuirPhotodotNet why the …. ?
They filmed this at the World Trade Center. It's crazy to think that this area no longer exists.
The Towers live forever because of this and other movies. 🙂
Red was the best! The horns and the drums and that bass sequence was just straight nasty!!
Karen Holmes oh yes..... that bassline was too greasy man.... HEAVY MUSIC!!
Yup and Beyoncé used it in her Coachella performance
Personally, I preferred Gold
So smooth
I agree!!! Red was smoking hot!!!
My grandmother was in this scene she always will talk about the significance of the colors til this day
Omg! I would love to hear EVERYTHING she had to say about it,remembered about it.
Now that's amazing 😲😲❤️
🙌🏾Your Grandma is so cool!!💯
What did your grandmother say. I will llike to hear her view please. I love listening to the elders
@@JohnSmith-qj6bj Cool grandmother AWARD !! 🏆😆😂 That's beautiful this movie is a CLASSIC!
Peep the colors of Africa. And how especially at the end of the gold sequence, their strut resembles the poses and colors of Egyptian royalty. They knew what they were doing. 💖💖💖💖
Africa is a CONTINENT. Egypt is one country idiot. All of us weren't from there and other African countries were far superior. Your Colorism and anti blackness is showing.
@@riveraspen2745 Unless that's your real name, that's disrespectful asf to the late Sharon Tate because I'm sure she would never call anyone she didn't know out of their name. That's was out of line and bogus asf. Watch it. You DO NOT know me. Calm it, bring it all the way down, and take whatever anger you have within your damn self to the alter because I am NOT the one.
Sharon Tate
Egypt is still a part of black culture and Egyptian royalty is a big part of black history so what’s wrong with that comment? Pyramids, check, the strut, check. Nothing they said was incorrect??
Tasteless Cakes No such thing as “black” culture smh🤦🏾♂️. You can’t have a culture based on a color lol it’s by what’s your race is, and black is not a race. And almost all of “blacks” in America don’t descend from kemet or Africa in general. We been here in America before Columbus
@@tastelesscakes I'm well aware HOWEVER AFRICA IS A CONTINENT WITH COUNTRIES that were more beautiful and evolved that Egypt yet the anti blackness from blacks that whites feed them shows every day. Bye.
Need to put this back in Theatres. The whole theme revolves around Dorothy's coming of age and what she witnessed stepping out into the real world. Miss One is a bag lady, the Munchkins are schoolyard graffiti, the scarecrow came from a cornfield in an abandoned lot back when New York was destitute and being burnt down for insurance fraud. The Emerald City Sequence seems to be that one little piece of joy people found in the Disco scene and following the latest fashion trends. I wish this movie could be openly available to EVERYONE.
THIS! There's so much symbolism in this sequence. The Red, Yellow and Green of New York stop lights. The fast-paced trends of fashion and society. The struggle of giving up food to look good. The peer pressure of society in a big city to stay "on trend". The subway scenes! I could write a whole dissertation on how symbolic and ahead of its time this song is. It is my all time favorite musical piece!
This scene is definitely also commentary about the black victims of consumerism. “Oh, how quickly fashion goes down the drain.”
And The Taxi Drivers Are Symbolic Of Racist People, White Supremacists, The KKK, etc. due to not letting the Black Characters Take Them
A number of people think The Wiz is just a black version of The Wizard of Oz, but it has its own meaning. The part where Dorothy helps The Scarecrow off the pole and he asks, “You mean all this time…the only thing keeping me on that pole…was those crows?” to have her reply, “It’s because you believed what they told you,” is a very profound scene to me. No matter who you are, there are people who try to mock you and tear you down because they’re unhappy with their own position (We later see the crows working at the sweatshop). There’s also Dorothy’s exchange with “The Wiz” before she leaves for home. She could have chosen not to give him the time of day after everything that happened, but instead she gave him some advice. Also, the songs are great.
There was talks yrs ago in the industry of doing a remake…Aaliyah was to be Dorothy….but you know why the talks ended.
Ain't nothing touching that GREEN 💸💚💚💚
I, wouldn't be seen GREEN. … Oooooooh Ooh Ooh Uh Ah I... Wouldn't be caught, dead. And... if I'm caught at all... then catch me, in Dead Red!
Color's Gold - melted ovah Hott Chocolate!! Hahahaha
NOTHING
I don't know that red is HOT
That Gold was sold.. tho.. 👏👏👏
Quincy Jones is a genius!!!
Mark Whitfield - Point Blank PERIOD!! Brilliant!
Don’t forget legendary
And a TRAITOR.
@@carolinagonzalezs. Speak on it god!
Carolina Gonzalez S. ?? What makes him a traitor?
Don't forget that the underlying message is that the unqualified, detached voice of the Wiz is dictating what everyone should like and feel. No one in this scene is acting independently, or freely they are being controlled by the Wiz.
This movie shows us everything wrong with the black community
@@giejackson9214 Elaborate please
@@giejackson9214how so?
@@Zenguy89 in this scene they're in some type of hypnosis..singing about superficial bullshit.. Dorothy was walking thru abandoned n half demolished, empty neighborhoods and everyone is in the elemarld city.. "Black people rather buy material stuff than fix their neighborhoods."
...i cannot begin to say how we stomped and screamed and cried...when we saw this when it as first shown in the theater...we had NEVER...seen black people like this before...every major designer in NYC...designed these costumes...it was just the ultimate statement of BLACK BEAUTY...on every level...i could watch this a thousand times and never get bored...it is an excellent movie...as revealing what a movie could be as creating representative images of what black people ...TRULY ARE...as ARTISTS...
There are some wokeys you need to talk to! They hold the idea that a scene like this patronizes black people. But obviously that is not the case!
@@MaskedMan66 .....i must say there were a lot of people did NOT like the movie...and really feel that DIANA...STOLE the movie from Stephanie Mills who killed the lead of the WIZ on Broadway....also the idea that the Wizard of Oz ...as a movie should not be tampered with ....PERIOD...especially by black people that was mostly...older people who were ambivalent about the black version...and Diana....however young people loved the movie...and especially this scene...black people had never been presented as beautiful to this caliber before...and so many ...
@@MaskedMan66 ....smile....you have a point...but they really have no idea of the subtext of how we had never had such stylish....dynamic representation....
@@corneliuswashington-gp1we With you all the way on that one! Looking through this comments page, so many black people are praising this sequence to the skies. I don't blame them one bit. 🙂
@@MaskedMan66 ....we had just NEVER....seen ourselves that way before....GROWN MEN....were OPENLY CRYING....we just were not ready...nothing in our lives had ever prepared us for THIS....
Talk about black entertainment
I know. Now a days it's hard we can't love each other. The 70s was all about peace and love. I'm 25 btw.
@@amberleyahlove7917 Im 24 and agree 100%
Better than a cover girl commercial
...OR any fashion show, so I couldn't agree more! ;D
Dead Celebrities & The Illuminati exactly
And all the silver and gold in the world won’t save you either!
As a kid I was mesmerized by this scene and till this day it still gives me that feeling ! One of my fav movies ♥️
....when we saw it at the theater when it 1st came out....we screamed and stomped and hollared....some people broke down crying....we had never seen ourselves so regal before.....never before this.....
Yup! I replay this scene over and over
This scene and the poppy girls scene
When I was little this was always my favorite part. I used to walk around slow 😂😂
Immo start doing that now in my fiftys! lol
This version is much more moving and inspiring than the Wizard Of Oz!
well of course
Korvus this ain’t even the original and it’s still better.
Korvus the original was created from a book so technically it wasn’t from scratch. To downplay this sequence just shows you’re a hater. This sequence was nice and impressive especially with the usage of color. To not even give a little credit just sounds like you’re a hater.
Korvus you a big hater
cabellero1120 The Wizard of Oz was fun and The Wiz was inspirational
My favorite part is the red lady. But the walk in the circle is top notch.
Filmed on the outdoor plaza of the Twin Towers. I loved going to the plaza just to visualize what it must have been like to film this sequence there. Long live the Twin Towers.
REALLY? I never knew that. 😊
@@QueenNaestar I guess many people up to about 25 don´t know the twin towers :-)
@@xylfox Hey now! I'm damn near 40, so I definitely know. 😄
One of sad realities is that this location no longer exists. 😥
I was there and performed outside with my Dance Group in 1981. It was nothing like I have ever seen or will forget🌹
I have never seen a more brilliant, thoughtful and timeless critique of the contemporary culture of distraction than this scene! Everything the Wiz does is a tactic to delay Dorothy and her crew from getting to him and this fashion/dance sequence is is his strongest attempt. The people are so busy trying to keep up with his trends that no one is focused on anything else.
I agree. Everything in 'The Wiz' was symbolic of urban life from drug dens to graffiti. This scene, as beautifully as it was done, was about materialism and ostentatiousness, and even intra-racial classism. It's a social statement that goes back generations in Black culture.
That's because he knows he can't do anything for them and is more content to be the mysterious ruler nobody ever sees and will not question.
“If your not seen in green , you better be wearing jade!” And. “You’ve got to be wearing gold, the 24 karat kind, and once you shine it up , it should ought to make you blind OWWW” are my favorite lines from this sequence ! I can’t choose which is my favorite but it’s definitely between Green & Gold for sure
Istg girl !!! 😭😭😭😭
Wish I could love this comment ❤️
...for me...it was GOLD...the MOVEMENT...THE FRENZY....THE DRAMA.....THE ATTITUDE....and the LOOK...that QUINCY JONES ..the gent playing the GOLD PIANO>>>WITH THE GOLD DUST IN HIS AFRO>>>the look he gives over his shoulder to the CAMERA...i saw the movie when it first hit the theaters...we in the audience...we had NEVER...seen black people like THAT...we were going INSANE...literally...you are TRULY SEEING A MOMENT IN AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY...
Same here, green and gold were my favorites.
GREEN MOST DEFINITELY THE SWAG WAS ON A MILLION
The single greatest American musical ever produced. Hands down.
Quincy Jones' opus magnum
Word'em up! Saw it live on Broadway, Thanksgiving 1978. Will never forget it! Amazing!!!!
I would agree...as a musical this is timeless!!
TOOK THE WORDS OUT OF MY MOUTH; HANDS DOWN!! 🙌💖👏
True
💯💯💯
Black people, so beautiful inspiring and intriguing. Saw this movie several times and it is a real gem. Love it, love you.
This just shows that if black people of pure talent comes together, we can make magic and dominate this business.. we've always been a threat to our suppressors from day one
SPEAK IT LOUD
Yup!
Weet rosé. Real talk
Right!
YOU’RE AN IDIOT....!!!!😜😜😜😜😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂
This Still remains as 1 of the most incredibly colorful and hip scenes captured on film!
The colors, sets, soundtrack!!
My sentiments exactly.
It was films on at the twin towers
It was the biggest and most expensive musical number ever filmed up until that time.
Hands down this is THE MOST COOL AND FASHIONABLE scene in American Cinema and possibly the greatest record of such in All of Western Civilization 😩😩😔💅🏽💃🏽🕺🏽
green part of the song is my fav part all of it is.
Diasporic
You’ve got to be seen green to show that your stuff laid if you’re not seeing green you better be wearing Jade yes yes yes
Mine too, that composition is so funky it hurts...probably one of my favorite pieces of music ever🖤
The Wiz is what you get when black people truly stick together. We can easily outclass in whatever we do when we're connected by love in both ourselves and for each other 💯
Great Comment 💚❤️💛
Meh. We're too race fixated.
Im 20 years old I been watching this movie since I was a little kid. It was just always something special abt it to me.
I just remember sitting in a theater in awe...Green was so smooth...Red was so "Flossy" and Gold the Celebration..IJS I wanted to grow up and Marry the Lady in the Red Rolls...Owwwww Oww Owww Owww Owww Ahhh!
Loved her part! Yes! 💖🙌
Swear! Im only 28 and this is my fav movie of all time!!!!
Omg, you saw this in theaters??!! 😤😲 Lucky. I wish I could've seen this, Jaws, and Halloween when they were originally in theaters. I was so born in the wrong decade 😔
This movie is not as bad as most people say, the music is amazing.
@@kidnplay3978 ...i saw it in the theater...we went crazy...there were people literally crying...we had never seen black people so regal...and stylish on a movie screen like that...ever before...the top designers of NYC designed all the costumes and the biggest models in the business were mixed in with the dancers.....
That strut at 6:40 tho!!!!!
Supahmann Smith reminds me of are you that somebody
Yaaaaaaasss sass's ya Digg kewl/ cool
They wasn't playing NO games
Yeah! Walking like an Egyptian!
It's my favorite, the precision alone takes my breath away!
This movie is about African American expression everyone and about Us accepting America as our home.
❤❤
EMERALD CITY GREEN:
I want to be seen green
Wouldn't be caught dead, red
'Cause if you are seen green
It means you got mean bread
You've got to be seen green
To show that you're stuff's layed
If you're not seen green
You better be wearing jade
Oh, you've got to be seen green
Don't tell them your cupboard's bare
That you gave up one week's feed
To pay for your colored hair
Oh, oh, oh
AN ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE GREAT POWERFUL OZ:
I thought it over and green is dead
'Till I change my mind, the color is red
EMERALD CITY RED:
I wouldn't be seen green
Ooo! Oo! Oo! Ah! Ah!
I wouldn't be caught dead
And if I'm caught at all
Then catch me in dead, red
Ooo!
You've got to be dead red
You've got to be real hot
So throw away those green gems
And wear rubies on your yacht
You've got to be dead, red
You've got to have flash and flair
And if you're not seen red
Then you shouldn't be seen nowhere
Ah!
How quickly fashion goes down the drain.
Last week when you all was wearin' pink
Already for me red was old.
The ultimate brick is gold.
That's the new color, children
EMERALD CITY GOLD:
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
You got to be seen gold
Watch out for the new kind
You got to have old gold
Like some from a gold mine
You got to be wearin' gold
The twenty four carat kind
And once you've shined it up
It should ought to make you blind, ah!
You got to be seen in gold
To show that you're super slick
It helps to pay tips and tolls
It's the ultimate yellow brick
It's the ultimate
Gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Golden gold
Gold, gold, gold, gold
Gold!
Thank you for this kind soul!! All these years i never knew all the words 😆😂😂
What u said !!!😂
I thought they were saying golden road🤣
@@bethmichelle4157 😂🤣
I thought they were saying Solid Gold?
Besides Michael Jackson’s number, this is hands down the BEST scene in the movie 🙌🏽✨💚❤️💛 (peep Quincy Jones playing the piano in the gold number tho)
I knew that was him😂
@@khalilnelson1288 ....when he looks back at the camera....looking like the CAT....that caught the CANARY....with the GOLD DUST IN HIS AFRO...truly it was a moment in AFRICAN AMERICAN HISTORY....
I didn't catch that until I was an adult showing this to my sons 😂
Like Puffy used to be back in the day... lol
It was simply the Gold that stole the show!
That piano spotlight, downright stole it.
@@lessermook7608 THAT'S MR. BILLY PRESTON ON THE PIANO.
So much
Kitty Che FACTS ✨🙌🏾🌟🤸🏽FINALLY GETS IT IN THE COMMENTS
babd71 that’s Quincy Jones on Piano
Love the Egyptian walk and theme. They were sending us all kinds of messages in this movie!
Every black model of the time was featured in this…
Why I love being Black, and I'm proud? This.
I get the chills EVERY TIME.
Love it. We are EVERYTHING
Black Excellence
Little bitch
Benjamin Yates shut up
Eat me.
@@benjaminyates6416 weird ass
YASSSSSS
The DEEPEST scene in the movie. Power to the people
The production value of this is so PEAK...
OMG! That is my favorite part of the movie! I loved it!
I was just about to type WHAT YOU SAID!
Yaaaaaasssssssssss LORD GET IT Tell'em Tiff my name Tiff J as well go girl
mine as well
@@tessahall5958 ME TOO!!!
Mine too
I was OBSESSED by this scene from first viewing. It's just effortlessly cool. It represents all that is great about black culture. Music, style, togetherness, rhythm. It's visually and musically stunning.
Another interesting little factoid was that they only had one day to shoot this scene so it had to be perfect in one go! And what a location for the Emerald City, The World Trade Center no less.
@@Greco4915 As a matter of fact, it was filmed across four nights.
Green is my favorite color 😊☺️😊
Seeing the twin towers in their glory days. A time where America was at a peak in prosperity. Movie beautifully done with the colors of Africa in each theme.
"You've Got To Be Seen in Green"💚💚💚💚💃🏾🕺🏾
According to the production notes on the Wiz DVD, this amazing scene involved three hundred and fifty performers, three hundred and eighty-five crew members, and over one thousand costumes provided by thirteen of the most well-known clothing designers in the business. Just three of the names the DVD mentions are Bill Blass, Ralph Lauren, and Oscar de la Renta.
wow !!
Also Norma Kamali, the parachute jumpsuit guy with goggles in green scene. And many more ,especially the gold scene.
@@leo123722 ....all of the designers are listed in the closing credits....they all did amazing work....
Always wonder this
Wow
The strutting they were doing is SICKENING ❤️✨ I love my people. #BlackExcellence
I swear, I always wanted to be a dancer in this one scene of the movie!!!!
You & me BOTH! I would have LOOOOOVED to be a dancer in this piece!!!!
😍😍😍💃🏾💃🏾💃🏾💃🏾
I would'a paid them 🤣
@@SiempreDancingSalsa2 me too!
@@dpcisunbreakable You're awesome! Cheers to us...
"We're Virtual TH-cam Wiz Dance Partners 2020"
🕺🏾💃🏾
Sign me up, I'm in! LMAO 🤣
The best scene in any movie that's ever existed. Ever. 🌄
Where's the lie? 🤔 💯💖
Yup
This movie is underrated and under appreciated. It is a true work of art expressing black liberation which inspires and lifts up everyone. It was really ahead of its time. Class act all around.
Its main failing was in being too serious as opposed to the more jokey stage version. If everything in the film had measured up to this sequence and been more light-hearted, it might have done better. But for what it is, it is a masterpiece all the same, and I've loved it since I saw it in the theaters as a kid.
you can't lie Black wore Green, red, and Gold beautifully
46 years later and this scene still gives me chills!
I wish there was some paradise somewhere for just black Americans we would build and create equal to the Egyptians.
Blacks did build Egypt you fool. What do you think those pyramids represent 🤦♂️
Create one.
There is its called heaven 🙏🙏🙏
That made me cry... l FELT that
@Mind Fucka I'm a black man. Nobody invented me. The proposal was a paradise for black Americans, which, as far as I know, still has yet to be created. We should create one.
As a musician and artist myself, I'm impressed with the amount of work that must have gone into this. The music is good, the bass playing is insane, and the visuals are striking. Michael Jackson gave an underrated performance as The Scarecrow IMO.
The word underrated gets thrown around alot on TH-cam and I'm beginning to think people don't know what it means... underrated by who? I don't know of anyone who's seen the film and dint live MJ's performance. And he was well reviewed by the critics.
@@GalaxyNexus1 Even people who panned the movie in general had nothing but good things to say about him!
Quincy Jones is the music director...nuff said.
Today so much of this would be digital. You really gotta admire the massive set, the costume designs, and all of the performers acting together en mass.
!!!!! This!!
This was one of the last of the truly epic, old-fashioned Hollywood musicals. I mean, even then there were ways of making a shoot like this "easier," but they wanted to do it big.
You've got to be seen GREEN! She's beautiful 0:52
They WORKED this! 😎❤
TF out of it!
the very beginning sounds like "workin day and night".. dope
Visuals by MaNnY good ear!
Visuals by MaNnY Well, Michael was inspired to start off the beginning of Working Day and Night with this piece since working with Q in the movie.
@Johari Larosa mmmhmm
Well, same musicians and Quincy...good ear you got there!!!
Totally didn’t notice this until I rewatched it for the idk 50th time I’m 34 btw I peeped it too like wait that sounds familiar I didn’t notice it before loo
This is absolutely the best dance sequence in cinema history!
THEY WALKING HUNTY , and I’m living for it .
Why is this my favorite part I’ll watch the whole movie for this part😂💍
FAAACCCTTTTSSSS
Of course, "Red" was the best number!
Absolutely!!
Yes I agree 🤲🏼
and if your caught at all you need to be caught in dead red
Oh yes!!! Red!!!!
This is my favorite part of this movie. FUUUUCK 😩😩😩😩🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾
The Wiz is a masterpiece! I grew up loving this version more than the '39 original. BEAUTIFUL.
What 39 original👀
That one was so dry and corny . I thought that even before I saw this masterpiece.
@@MsAppleofhiseye Troll.
Happy 40th Anniversary!!!! 💚❤💛
Crazy how this looks like something we would see at a present 2019 Grammy or award show👌
They couldn't fit all those people on an indoor stage! 🙂
I buy this movie so many times and wear it out. its a classic, one of the most creative movies of its time without CGI, give a black man a budget and creative freedom and you got The Wiz- it is what it is
“And if you’re not seen in red, then you shouldn’t be seen NOWHERE!!”❤ I love love love this movie. I’m 22 now but this has been one of my favorite movies since I was a kid. And this scene always stood out to me. The fashion, the beauty, the elegance… Something about this scene always makes me so proud to be a black woman.
Black People makes everything better. I love The Wizard of Oz too but I grew up on The Wiz. 😊
This^
Divisions of class in the 1970s is a theme I see in this scene. The working class looking into the world of high society in New York. "How does it feel to be one of the beautiful people?"
Geoffrey Holder was a genius! He designed the sets and the costumes!
....no he did everything for the Broadway production of it....
Was it Louis johnson?
Tony Walton (Mr. Julie Andrews) designed the costumes and the sets.
@@brittneyrussell5629 Tony Walton.
Gives me chills ❤ we are gorgeous 😭
Gold was always my favorite as a child and still remains that way. The instrumentation captures the color gold so wonderfully! I used to think I was cool for knowing Quincy was on the piano...apparently, everyone knew😒😂 Good memories from one of my all-time favorite movies!
I knew it was him because I'd seen him on T.V., but there are some folks right here on this page who came to that realization years after they'd seen the movie. So don't feel so bad! 🙂
My was red ❤
5:27 I wanna play the piano like that so bad
Quincy Jones is a genius!!!
It’s the strut walk for me 😭😂
The spitting image of black excellence
This is one of my favorite scenes in any musical I've scene in my lifetime. This is a real extravaganza, and a showcase for late 70s high-end fashions. It makes Wakanda look like Sanford and Son! And from a cinema history standpoint, you will never see a more opulent expression of Black Beauty than in this moment.
Literally some of the most talented dancers ever were in this. Still gives me chills.
Goosebumps....
The Epitome of Black Excellence...✊🏾🖤
Black Excellence is an oxymoron....!!!!😜😜😜😜😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣
oxymoron? you jealous?
WORD
The little walking cameras are so frickin cute!!
This was in 1978 but it is so relevant now.
Would have been shot in 1977.
The bass lines in this sequence is insane!!!
RETRO FUTURISTIC BLACK EXCELLENCE.
This was the era of Parliament and Earth, Wind and Fire, so the "spacey" look was very much in!
Oh this meant so much to me as a little Black girl, it means more now as a woman. Thank you. So proud.
Queen Mutha Bethann (Dwayne Wayne's Mom) and Iman at 1:15! So many legends in here.
They all look like God's and Goddesses 👑💖🎶🎶
The people of Oz are fairy folk, able to remain young and beautiful no matter how long they have lived, and they cannot die.
Without a doubt the best representation portrayal of black people in a flim... TAKE NOTES TYLER PERRY
....he could NEVER....he does not have the RANGE....or the ELEGANCE...the director of the film JOEL SCHUMACHER....worked for AMERICAN VOGUE for many years as a STYLIST... before he became a director...he LOANED ....the fashion genius HALSTON... the seed money that began HIS CAREER...he also discovered the actress ...JULIA ROBERTS...among many other stunning talented people....his pedigree is UNMATCHED...as an all around ARTIST....
"You've Got To Be Seen In Gold"
Funny because it looks so good on us...oh yeah because its only for us...the power is real...
I kinda agree with that lol 😂💛
Um don't be racist
@@shalanglanglife2198 how is that racist? Gold is literally in all our flags
@@ygbangtanturtlekimspoon8148 Depends on exactly who the OP means by "us." Could mean the whole human race.