Life On The Streets’ Coming To Streaming As “NBC Has Managed To Finally Secure The Music Rights”

Homicide: Life On the Street is coming to streaming, according to David Simon, author of Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets, the book on which the show created by Paul Attanasio was based.

In a new post on social media, Simon said that NBC had cleared the music used on the series, and it would be coming to a streaming platform, with NBCUniversal’s Peacock the logical home.

“Word is that NBC has managed to finally secure the music rights necessary to sell Homicide: Life On The Streets to a streaming platform,” read the post shared by Simon on X, formerly known as Twitter.”

He continued, “Andre [Braugher], Richard [Belzer], Yaphet [Kotto], Ned [Beatty], and so many others who labored on that wonderful show on both sides of the camera will soon regain a full share of their legacy. Stay tuned for more details.”

One of Simon’s followers asked about music rights being a barrier when selling, to which the author replied, “In the case of Homicide, the rights were negotiated long ago before streaming existed as a viewing platform. A fair compensation for the new use needed to be negotiated.”

Homicide: Life on the Street aired on NBC from 1993 to 1999 for seven seasons. The series followed a fictional Baltimore Police Department Homicide Unit and starred Daniel Baldwin, Richard Belzer, Andre Braugher, Clarkson Johnson, Yaphet Kotto, Melissa Leo, Jon Polito, Kyle Secor, Ned Beatty, and many more.

The show earned many accolades throughout its run. It became the first drama to win three Peabody Awards for drama in 1993, 1995, and 1997. It also won two Primetime Emmys in 1993 for Outstanding Writing and Outstanding Directing in a Drama Series. The Emmys recognized Braugher’s acting work in 1998 with a win in the Outstanding Lead Actor for a Drama Series category.

Guest actors nominated at the Emmys for their roles in the series include Alfre Woodard, Vincent D’Onofrio, Lily Tomlin, Gwen Verdon, and Robin Williams.