Today we’ve got a more serious, but extremely necessary piece. We will be celebrating and acknowledging the credentials, creativity, and influence Black musicians have had throughout the years. Black History Month is of the utmost importance in my eyes because American culture is Black culture. Whether it’s food, sports, fashion, persona, dance, film, OF COURSE music, and many more ways, America has adopted Black culture. Without understanding its history or even just acknowledging that fact, it’s harmful to the Black community.
Because I don’t want it to ever be overlooked, I’m gonna shed some light on a few historical Black landmarks and how they’ve impacted the world today. I’m trying not to bore anybody to death with a long history lesson, but like I said knowing this stuff is important. I guarantee your favorite artist employs some type of musical style that was created by a Black person, so if you like music, pay your respects.
Rock
When I hear “Rock music”, I don’t know about y’all but my mind immediately associates that with a largely white audience. However, this wasn’t the case in the mid 20th century; and just because today’s consumers are white doesn’t mean Black people weren’t instrumental in its creation. J. Cole said it best (as usual) on his song “Fire Squad”, where he states, “Same thing that my n!##@ Elvis did with Rock n Roll”.
The inception of Rock n Roll had many influences. However, three of its most prominent were Rhythm and Blues (R&B), Jazz, and Blues, three Black styles of music. Meaning, if there weren’t Black people there would be no Elvis, and there would be no The Beatles, and so on and so forth.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe was the first artist to make Gospel a popular recorded music in the 1930s and 40s. But did you know that she is regarded as “The Godmother of Rock n Roll”? If finding out that a Black woman pioneered Rock music doesn’t convince you that Black people have a fingerprint in EVERYTHING, I don’t know what will. She mixed her original gospel style with a R&B twist, while adding a distorted electric guitar, and boom she had Rock music. Not to mention that her music is actually tuff, you can hear for yourself below.
Blues
I’m sure everyone has heard of the Blues, but I doubt that many people have actually heard it. I can’t even claim to be proficient in Blues knowledge. However, I do understand the impact. Pretty much every major genre of music needs to pay homage to the Blues in one way or another. If a particular genre wasn’t directly influenced by the Blues, then whatever genre it was born from was.
Unfortunately, much of the origins of Blues music is poorly documented. However, we do know the Blues was created by Southern African Americans in the 1860s. Meaning that while Black people were dealing with SLAVERY, they also were able to create some of the most influential music known to man. Wild. We also know that it was originally most commonly played as church and folk music and quickly evolved into jazz music. In the interest of time, I’m not Gunna dive into Jazz music, but just know that it has been extremely impactful in the music world.
What I found most interesting of all, was typical Blues lyrics. These days it seems very trivial to say that lyrics often used to express one’s emotions. Contrarily, this wasn’t always the case. Blues music was the first genre of music to express pure emotion through song and lyrics, and as you could probably guess, these emotions were sad. Before this, song lyrics typically consisted of storytelling. So anytime you’re listening to a sad love song and it’s helping you through your relationship problems, you can thank Black people and the Blues.
Unlike Rock music and similar to Rap, the Blues continued to be predominately Black performed art. An overwhelming majority of successful Blues musicians are Black, which is a lot more sacred than it sounds. As I’ve said numerous times, Black people’s creations are often imitated, and eventually taken advantage of for capital.
Rap
This part is gunna be less historical and more ranty.
In most cases, Rap is a lyrically focused art form that often times narrates former circumstances or the current climate of society. The product of Black music typically is the result of the struggle they face, so for you to appropriately celebrate the music, you must acknowledge the circumstances it took to make the music.
I don’t think the influence of Rap in our society should be a surprise to anyone. Rap is a relatively newer genre, but has quickly made its mark on the world; easily being one of the best examples of how Black people shape the culture of America. Of course, every genre of music has incorporated some aspects of Rap, but it goes beyond the music. For this section I’m not doing any research, I’m just speaking about what I AND you have seen in our society. I don’t care who you are, you have seen the influence that Rap has had on our world, and you cannot deny it. Rap artists are idolized, plain and simple. Meaning what they wear, what they say, how they act, etc. is gonna be mainstream behavior. This isn’t a new phenomenon, this has been a thing since Rap started.
Personally, I think the influence Rap culture has had on America is very fitting and representative. If you’re going to take away anything from this article, it should be that America loooves to practice popular Black culture. That’s fine, I get it. Just make sure you understand, appreciate, and are ready to advocate for the same people that create this culture.
Just to get some history in, check out what’s commonly referred to as the first Rap song ever, it’s a classic.
But Yeah…
Black people have been setting the trend in music for quite some time now and it needs to be acknowledged. America runs on the hard work and creativity Black people provide to the culture. So every now and then when you’re listening to your favorite artist, remember that it wouldn’t be possible without the great Black musicians we’ve had. Understand that there a have been many more contributions to music made besides the ones listed in this article. But just for a point of reference, unless it’s classical music it was probably influenced by Black people.
Very enlightening and very lit thanks bro! 👏🏾