Watch Beyond the Lights

Beyond the Lights tells the story of an unlikely romance between an up-and-coming pop star and a policeman who intervenes when she considers ending her own life. In 1998 in London, a young Noni Jean is taken by her mother Macy to a salon to get her hair done before her performance at a talent contest. Noni is happy to win second place for her performance of Nina Simone's "Blackbird", but her mother refuses to accept anything but first place and forces Noni to smash her trophy on the ground. In the present, Noni Jean is a hot new artist who has just won a Billboard Music Award for her collaboration with her boyfriend Kid Culprit and is primed for superstardom. However, the pressures of success cause her to nearly end her life by falling off a hotel balcony. She is saved by a young police officer, Kaz Nicol. Noni's team, including her mother, tells the media in a press conference that she fell by accident. Kaz, who has political ambitions, is not happy to be forced to lie to the media, and is initially cold to Noni. However, he later apologizes to her. Gradually, they connect and begin to fall in love, despite her mother's disapproval. Noni tells Kaz about the songs she has secretly written, and he is supportive of her creative ambitions. Noni decides to end the romantic relationship with Kid Culprit that her team has encouraged.