Revolt is an American music-oriented

digital cable Digital cable is the distribution of cable television using digital data and video compression. The technology was first developed by General Instrument. By 2000, most cable companies offered digital features, eventually replacing their previo ...

television network A television broadcaster or television network is a telecommunications network for the distribution of television show, television content, where a central operation provides programming to many television stations, pay television providers or ...

and media company targeting African Americans. The TV network launched on October 21, 2013, as part of a larger agreement with

Comcast Comcast Corporation, formerly known as Comcast Holdings,Before the AT&T Broadband, AT&T merger in 2001, the parent company was Comcast Holdings Corporation. Comcast Holdings Corporation now refers to a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation, not th ...

. As of 2024, Detavio Samuels is CEO, while the company's employees are the majority shareholding group. Revolt's cable network is primarily dedicated to

hip hop Hip-hop or hip hop (originally disco rap) is a popular music genre that emerged in the early 1970s from the African-American community of New York City. The style is characterized by its synthesis of a wide range of musical techniques. Hip- ...

and

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban contemporary r ...

music genres, with music video blocks comprising the majority of the network's schedule. The network's non-music programming covers Afro-American &

hip hop culture Hip-hop culture is an art movement that emerged in New York City, in the borough of The Bronx; Primarily within the black community. Hip Hop as an art form and culture has been heavily influenced by both male and female artists. It is charac ...

, as well as

social justice Social justice is justice in relation to the distribution of wealth, opportunities, and privileges within a society where individuals' rights are recognized and protected. In Western and Asian cultures, the concept of social justice has of ...

issues. As of July 2021, Revolt's cable network was available in 50 million U.S. households.

History

Background

As part of its arrangement to acquire a minority interest in

NBCUniversal NBCUniversal Media, LLC (abbreviated as NBCU and Trade name, doing business as NBCUniversal or Comcast NBCUniversal since 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational mass media and Show business, entertainment conglomerate (comp ...

committed to carry several minority-owned networks. The arrangement followed pressure led by Maxine Waters in congressional hearings. In April 2011, Comcast solicited proposals for minority-owned networks. In February 2012, Comcast announced distribution arrangements for four networks, including Revolt. The four announced networks and six forthcoming stations were being chosen from among in excess of 100 proposals to begin airing by 2020. On October 1, 2013, Revolt announced that it would debut in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

and

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

on October 21.

Expansion

AT&T U-verse added the SD feed on July 27, 2015, and the HD feed on November 24, 2015;

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would add the feed on December 24, 2015. On October 18, 2019,

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announced that it would launch a

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

version of Revolt on November 1, 2019, in-collaboration with Dutch record label TopNotch, and AreaMedia. Its programming would consist of interviews, news, hip-hop documentaries, live events, and music videos. During its first months of broadcast, the US version of the channel would be shown on a 6-hour delay; from January 2020, Dutch programmes would be broadcast. The Dutch version was eventually closed on February 1, 2021. In

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, Revolt would be part of the launch lineup of Live TV service RiverTV on June 4, 2020.

Departure of Combs; employee ownership

On November 28, 2023, Combs said he would take a leave of absence amidst sexual assault lawsuits; it was unclear when he would return to the company. At the time, Combs was not involved with Revolt's day-to-day operations. In March 2024, Combs sold his stake in Revolt to an anonymous buyer. On June 4, 2024, Revolt revealed that “Shares held by the company’s former chair have been fully redeemed and retired”, and that they have transferred majority ownership to its employees in order to keep the outlet Black-owned. CEO Detavio Samuels, who joined in 2020, spoke to ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' in an interview expressing hope that “more CEOs embrace and embody this idea of linked prosperity: if the company wins, every single person wins. We’re trying to set an industry standard where this type of thing becomes the norm.”

Revolt Films

Revolt Films is a separate entity from the network, founded before its launch, but using the same name for brand association. It specializes in developing, producing, and financing films and original television content. *'' Lawless'' (2012; one year before the network launched; its first full-length feature film). *'' Dope'' (2015)

Notes

External links

REVOLT.TV website
{{Authority control REVOLT TV English-language television stations in the United States Television channels and stations established in 2012 Music video networks in the United States Music television channels Television networks in the United States African-American television networks