January 18, 2023
UPDATE
In celebration of Black Historical past Month, Apple releases new Black Unity assortment and content material
Apple commemorates Black Historical past Month with unique content material and curated launches celebrating Black tradition and group. Beginning right now, clients can present their assist with this yr’s Black Unity Assortment, which features a special-edition Apple Watch Black Unity Sport Loop, alongside a brand new matching watch face and iPhone wallpaper. Starting in February, all-new activations — together with a collection of Apple Maps Guides created by the Smithsonian, TV and movie collections curated by Dr. Jelani Cobb, and extra will likely be out there to discover. Moreover, via its Racial Fairness and Justice Initiative (REJI), Apple is increasing its assist of 5 organizations centered on uplifting Black and Brown communities by unlocking artistic potential via know-how.
Apple Watch and iPhone
Members of Apple’s Black artistic group and allies got here collectively to develop this yr’s Black Unity Assortment and designed the brand new expressions impressed by the artistic means of mosaic, celebrating the vibrancy of Black communities and the facility of unity.
The Black Unity Sport Loop options the phrase “Unity” woven abstractly into the band utilizing crimson, inexperienced, and black yarns that pay homage to the Pan-African flag, whereas a novel layering of yarns lends a way of three-dimensionality to the letters. Moreover, the Unity Mosaic watch face incorporates geometric shapes in inexperienced, black, crimson, and yellow, and because the minutes change, every quantity makes use of items of different numbers to morph into new kinds. iPhone customers can even present their assist with the brand new Unity wallpaper for his or her Lock Display.
Apple is supporting Artwork Gallery of New South Wales (Sydney), Ghetto Movie Faculty (New York, Los Angeles, London), Music Ahead (Los Angeles), Shout Mouse Press (Washington, D.C.), and The Nationwide Museum of African American Music (Nashville, Tennessee). Apple’s assist for these organizations is a continuation of REJI grants over the previous two years that helped organizations dedicated to offering financial, academic, and artistic alternatives in communities of colour.
App Retailer
The App Retailer will highlight apps and video games forging artistic options for Black communities in areas comparable to music, banking, and gaming. Amongst these apps and video games are Dot’s House, a 2022 App Retailer Award-winning recreation designed to teach customers on housing disparities skilled in communities of colour and monetary wellness apps comparable to Goalsetter, Altro, and CapWay which are empowering the group with monetary assets. The App Retailer may even have a good time 50 years of hip-hop tradition by spotlighting quite a few apps that enable customers to pay attention, watch, and study the importance of this artistic motion in each the previous and current.
Apple Music
Apple Music will underscore the innumerable ways in which Black artists have contributed to music and tradition via therapeutic, improvisation, reinvention, and a lot extra throughout all genres. The For Us, By Us playlist will likely be up to date to seize expressions of resilience and resistance, and customers can even take pleasure in new episodes of The Message and extra radio programming on Apple Music 1, Nation, and HITS.
Apple TV App
Viewers can go to the Apple TV app to discover collection and movies curated by Dr. Jelani Cobb, dean of the Columbia College Faculty of Journalism and a employees author at The New Yorker. The theme of this yr’s collections is “The Matter of Black Lives,” specializing in tales that illustrate three particular pillars: “Freedom in Black,” “Love in Spite Of,” and “The Mosaic.”
Apple Health+
Apple Health+ will share new exercises that includes playlists celebrating Black artists, in addition to a brand new meditation devoted to Black Historical past Month led by Health+ coach JoAnna Hardy. On January 30, Health+ will launch a brand new episode of Time to Stroll — an audio expertise with a number of the world’s most inspiring folks — that includes legendary singer Patti LaBelle. On this stroll, LaBelle talks about her well-known cooking and the highly effective position her late sister performed in her life. That very same day, Time to Run, an audio operating expertise that includes playlists and training designed to assist customers grow to be extra constant and higher runners, will introduce a brand new episode with Health+ coach Cory Wharton-Malcolm, celebrating Black Historical past Month with a run via South LA and songs from the artists who helped put West Coast hip-hop on the map.
Apple Information
All through the month, Apple Information will spotlight compelling articles, interviews, and audio tales concerning the Black expertise in America, together with views and evaluation from prime journalists. Curated collections will showcase tales from Black-led newsrooms, together with Capital B, Essence, NewsOne, Howard College’s The Hilltop, and extra.
Apple Podcasts
Each day, listeners open Apple Podcasts to listen to from the world’s most inspiring and influential voices. And every year, Apple’s collections honoring Black Historical past Month assist listeners uncover creators providing important historic context and insightful views on information and tradition. Starting February 1, Apple Podcasts will highlight reveals that embody the omnipresence of Blackness — the ways in which Black music, media, areas, and idea positively affect our understanding of the world and each other — from creators Bridget Todd, Bob the Drag Queen, Monét X Change, and Apple Music’s Ebro Darden. Listeners may even be capable of discover a bespoke choice of podcast suggestions curated by Black disruptors — visionaries of their fields who resist the established order to share stunning artwork and innovation — comparable to environmental activist Leah Thomas.
Apple Books
Throughout Black Historical past Month, Apple Books will showcase its Learn Extra Black Authors assortment, connecting readers and listeners with nice books and audiobooks throughout totally different genres.
Apple Maps
The Smithsonian created a collection of Guides in Apple Maps to highlight key landmarks within the battle for civil rights over the previous century (1900-1957, 1960-1978, 1980-2020). Customers can discover the Guides to study extra concerning the occasions, folks, and locations which have formed the nation’s historical past.
Pricing and Availability
- The Black Unity Sport Loop is obtainable for order on apple.com and within the Apple Retailer app right now, and will likely be out there in choose Apple Retailer areas starting January 24 for $49 (US).
- The Black Unity Sport Loop is obtainable in 41mm and 45mm sizes, and is suitable with Apple Watch SE, Apple Watch Sequence 4 or newer, and Apple Watch Extremely (45mm band solely).
- The Unity 2023 watch face will likely be out there subsequent week, and requires Apple Watch Sequence 4 or later operating watchOS 9.3, and iPhone 8 or later and iPhone SE (2nd era) or later operating iOS 16.3.
- The brand new Unity iPhone wallpaper for the Lock Display will likely be even be out there subsequent week and requires iPhone 8 or later operating iOS 16.3.
- Apple Watch Black Unity Sport Loop packaging, Apple Retailer areas, and the Apple Retailer app will characteristic App Clip performance for patrons to simply obtain the matching Unity watch face, or clients can obtain from apple.com.
Press Contacts
Apple Media Helpline
(408) 974-2042
