On episode 53 of Doc Talk, Belgian filmmaker Johan Grimonprez joined the show to discuss his award-winning documentary Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat. The film explores how the U.S. and Belgium conspired to force Lumumba from power, with the complicity of the UN secretary general. Even as the plot moved towards a bloody denouement, the U.S. State Department was dispatching some of America’s great Black jazz artists to Africa in the role of goodwill ambassadors, attempting to paper over its machinations in Congo. Grimonprez explains how he managed to deftly synthesize so much complex world history, setting it to the beat of Louis Armstrong, Dizzy Gillespie, Lincoln and Roach. The film has emerged as a leading Oscar contender after winning awards at film festivals around the world. Listen to the episode through the link in bio or on major podcast platforms including Spotify, iHeart, and Apple.