February 16, 1961. Two jazz musicians, Abbey Lincoln and Max Roach, storm the UN Security Council to protest the assassination of Patrice Lumumba, the first democratically elected prime minister of Congo. It is six months after sixteen newly independent African nations were admitted to the UN, a political earthquake that shifted the majority vote away from the colonial Western powers. While Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev bangs his shoe in outrage over the UN’s complicity in Lumumba’s overthrow, the U.S. turns to jazz. Fearing the loss of Congolese uranium, they send music legends like Louis Armstrong, Nina Simone, Dizzy Gillespie, and Duke Ellington to Africa to divert attention from the CIA-backed coup. Meanwhile, Armstrong and others wrestle with a painful dilemma: how can they represent a country where racial segregation is still very much alive?
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat brims with energy and is both a painful piece of colonial history and a vibrant jazz concert. Sharp and richly detailed, director Johan Grimonprez unravels the decolonization of Congo, exposing the 1961 assassination of Lumumba and the involvement of Belgian and U.S. governments. By weaving jazz music with political intrigue, he paints a powerful picture of colonialism, racism, and the ongoing struggle for Congo's resources. Combined with a montage as jazzy as the soundtrack, the Special Jury Award at Sundance, and a triumphant run at numerous film festivals, Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat is the must-see documentary of the year.