Some movies stay in our minds because of their sharp plots, quotable one-liners, and unforgettable characters. Others stay with us for the music.
That distinction was unmistakable at a recent screening of Forest Whitaker's 1995 romantic comedy-drama “Waiting to Exhale” as part of a Cult Classics Cinema event at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. While the film was being shown, approximately 80 attendees swayed their bodies and sang songs from the Grammy-winning soundtrack, including “Sitting in my room“by Brandy, Mary J. Blige”I'm not going to cry”, and “Let It Flow” by Toni Braxton.
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When Whitney Houston's theme song, “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)”, During a scene in which her character, Savannah, reconnects with a man she has been having an on-again, off-again affair with, the audience sang the lyrics in unison like a chorus: “Everyone falls in love sometimes / Sometimes it's wrong and other times it's right.”
“It's really a time capsule of '90s R&B,” says Miracle Mile attendee Deonna Tillman, 33, who listened to the Babyface-produced album during her trip to the event as a way to prepare for the screening. “It also has our greats there, Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin… It's iconic.”
Each month, Cult Classics Cinema screens a film event, hosted by Diamora Hunt, then theatergoers can attend an informal listening party, where the film's soundtrack plays from start to finish.
Part film screening, part listening party, Cult Classics Cinema is a series of events celebrating beloved black films and the music that helps bring them to life. Each month, founder Diamora Hunt, who also goes by DJ Rosegawd, screens a film (titles include “The Wiz,” “The Wood,” “Set It Off” and “Love Jones”) and then invites attendees to stay for a more casual listening party, where the soundtrack plays from start to finish. The recent screening of “Waiting to Exhale,” the film adaptation of Terry McMillian's 1992 novel starring Huston, Angela Bassett, Lela Rochon and Loretta Devine, celebrated the film's 30th anniversary.
In Los Angeles, where screenings take place almost every night of the week at venues like Quentin Tarantino's Vista Theater and the New Beverly, and the TCL Chinese Theatre, as well as at special events like Rooftop Cinema and Cinespia, Cult Classics Cinema stands out for its community atmosphere that gives people the space to not only enjoy films and their soundtracks, but also to commemorate Black histories.
“I want to feel like I'm in the living room with my friends,” says Hunt, 36, adding that it's become a ritual for her to watch soundtrack music videos after finishing a movie. “I feel like they go hand in hand in building the world.”
For Hunt, who has been a DJ for almost a decade, it always comes back to the music.
As a lover of movie soundtracks, Cult Classics Cinema founder Diamora Hunt (aka DJ Rosegawd) wanted to create an experience where people could enjoy the movie and the music.
During the COVID lockdown, he spent his only day off from his insurance and call center jobs doing hours-long live DJ sets on Twitch from his bedroom. Every Saturday, he would choose a different artist, mainly women, go through their entire discography and share interesting facts about them. Among the artists he highlighted were Missy Elliott, Britney Spears, Ariana Grande, Beyoncé, Mariah Carey and Drake.
In 2022, Hunt began hosting Club Renaissance, a dance party where she would play Beyoncé's seminal album “Renaissance” in order from top to bottom at various locations in Los Angeles. The show took off immediately and had to move to a larger venue to accommodate a crowd of 1,200. At a party, Grammy-winning rapper Doechii performed “Heated” with her DJ Miss Milan. Additionally, Beyoncé's mother, Tina Knowles, posted about the event on Instagram, saying that Jay Z sent her a recap video.
After hosting the event for several months in Los Angeles and bringing it to New York, Hunt wondered if he could do the same for other beloved albums. To test that theory, she premiered the Cult Classics party under her Ladera Hearts event company in February 2023. The first album she highlighted was Brandy's third studio album, “Full Moon,” on the night of a full moon at the Blind Barber in Highland Park.
He continued like this, hosting dedication nights honoring Usher's “Confessions,” Janet Jackson's “The Velvet Rope,” 50 Cent's “Get Rich or Die Tryin',” Aaliyah's “One in a Million” and Mariah Carey's “The Emancipation of Mimi.” After watching a fan's animated recap video of the party, Carey commented “invite me next time” with two kiss-face emojis.
Hunt says he thinks people were receptive to the party, even if they weren't familiar with the album, because you're “surrounded by people who love it and will tell you why they love it.” And he adds: “It helps people connect with [the music] in a different way.”
He wondered if he could create that same feeling with his favorite movies and their soundtracks.
Hunt hosted the first Cult Classics Cinema event in November 2024 and screened the 1992 film “Boomerang” starring Eddie Murphy, Halle Berry, Chris Rock and Robin Givens at a local bar. During the show, she shared tidbits about the soundtrack, such as the fact that Toni Braxton's song “Love Shoulda Brought You Home” was her introduction to the music industry.
Singer Tyger Lily and producer Knoqlist previewed their “Waiting to Exhale”-inspired music video at the Miracle Theatre.
Since January 2025, it has hosted its movie nights at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. Just days before Thanksgiving, Hunt screened “Soul Food” and invited stars Vivica A. Fox, Brandon Hammond and Morgan Méchelle to participate in a panel discussion hosted by Randy C. Bonds. Attendees were then invited to a family dinner with cast members.
At the recent screening of “Waiting to Exhale,” viewers walked down a red carpet to reach the theater entrance. After choosing a custom button depicting popular scenes from the movie, many guests had a themed cocktail (named after the four main characters) and a snack (popcorn, empanadas, or boxes of candy) at the bar. While people waited to place their order, they could read fun facts about the movie and soundtrack.
During the film, attendees laughed out loud, yelled at the characters on the screen as if they could hear them (“Don't do it!”) and recited their lines (“Go away!”).
As someone who regularly attends film screenings, Tillman says it's hard to find dedicated Black storytellers, which is why he appreciates Cult Classics Cinema.
“I feel like we have a lot of black moviegoers in Los Angeles, but we don't have a lot of access to see our classics,” Tillman says, adding that many of these films aren't available on streaming platforms, “which is really frustrating.”
Felisha Fowlkes, 34, has attended multiple Cult Classics Cinema events alone. “When you hear these songs, you think of the scenes in the movie,” he says. “You're thinking about what happened emotionally and I feel like [the music] It allows you to really sit in that place.”
When the two-hour movie ended, one attendee won the grand raffle prize, which included “Waiting to Exhale” on DVD and a DVD player to play it.
“Waiting to Exhale” attendees react during a screening. “I want to feel like I'm in the living room with my friends,” says Cult Classics Cinema founder and host Diamora Hunt.
As the music video for Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop)” played on the big screen with the song’s lyrics at the bottom, Hunt moved the microphone to the center of the stage in case anyone felt called to sing.
Nobody accepted the offer. Who would want to compete with a powerful singer like Houston? Still, the energy in the room remained high as the crowd sang along, bobbed their heads, and danced to the music from the comfort of their plush seats.
It felt, just as Hunt had imagined, like being in a living room with all your friends.
Cult Classics Cinema will screen “Boomerang” on Saturday, “A Thin Line Between Love and Hate” on February 15 and “BAPS” on March 14 at the Miracle Theater in Inglewood. Tickets from $15 (excluding taxes and fees).
