NEW YORK, July 8, 2026 — THE SONG OF HIAWATHA: The Life and High Times of the First Black Hippie is now screening at film festivals across the United States, bringing audiences the remarkable story of Hiawatha Bailey — political activist, musician, and a countercultural figure recognized as the first Black hippie. The film is set to premiere on August 9, 2026 at the Austin Film Society in conjunction with the Sound Unseen Film Festival.
The feature-length documentary traces Bailey’s journey from the Great Migration to Detroit in the 1950s to his emergence in the radical and artistic underground of the 1960s and 1970s. Along the way, he became the only Black member of the White Panther Party, served a four-year prison term, and later formed the punk band Cult Heroes.
The film features appearances by Hiawatha Bailey, Iggy Pop, Patti Smith, Wayne Kramer, John Sinclair, Cheetah Chrome, Leni Sinclair, Niagara Detroit, Pun Plamondon, David Fenton, Maxi Chanel, John Brannon, and others, and draws on rare archival material including never-before-seen photographs and historic documents. Its soundtrack includes music by The MC5, The Rationals, Cult Heroes, Static, Pure Hell, and original scoring by Elan Portnoy of The Fuzztones.
Through a vividly psychedelic visual style, THE SONG OF HIAWATHA explores race, music, radical politics, sexual identity, prison, and the making of an American original, offering a fresh look at the intersections of counterculture, punk, and political history.
“A beautiful and enlightening film… a fast-paced, captivating, wild ride.” — Jesse Malin, musician
“A real educational and inspirational experience… I believe it is a triumph.” — Matt Pinfield, syndicated rock radio host
“Hiawatha is a shapeshifting everything — hippy radical, punk, queer visionary.” — Carlo McCormick, culture critic
“A compelling, psychedelic documentary. It’s time we all ‘got Hi.’” — Steve Bloom, Rolling Stone / High Times
About the filmmakers
Produced by Steven Blush, writer-producer of the Sundance-premiered American Hardcore, and directed by Jeffrey Wengrofsky, whose work has focused on underground cultural figures, The Song of Hiawatha marks Wengrofsky’s first feature film.