Every February, we celebrate the history of black individuals, especially black artists and the music they’ve created. Many black artists and songs that we listen to not only influenced and reflected major moments in history, but they also have a huge impact on the music that is played and listened to today. Today we see a major influence of black music/musicians throughout all parts of American culture. There are various genres of music that were influenced by talented black musicians who paved the way for many other musicians today.
A few genres of music influenced by black musicians include:
Blues: Blues was born in the late 1800s when many African Americans were experiencing resistance, oppression, struggle, and hope. Robert Johnson, blues guitarist, and Bessie Smith, blues singer, also known as “Empress of the Blues,” were known as pioneers of the blues (musicforwardfoundation.org). W.C. Handy was a trumpeter and published music for “Memphis Blues” and was known as the “Father of the Blues” (thecurrent.org).
A few popular blues songs are, “Me and the Devil Blues” by Robert Johnson, “I’d Rather Go Blind” by Etta James, and “Evil” by Howlin’ Wolf (middermusic.com).
Rhythm and Blues (R&B): Rhythm and Blues was born between 1916-1960 and was a big part of America’s Evolution. It was a combination of blues, jazz, gospel, and boogie-woogie and it started to represent urban environments through social concerns, cultural pride shown through music, and amplified sounds. Ruth Brown was a major figure of R&B as she was known as the “Queen of R&B” (musicforwardfoundation.org). Ike Turner and his R&B group “Rocket 88” were known as “The Kings of Rhythm” (thecurrent.org).
A few popular R&B hits are, "Stand by Me” by Ben E. King, “I Will Survive” by Gloria Gaynor, and “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding (musicgrotto.com)
Soul: The 1960s was the birth of Soul music when the Voting Rights Act and the Civil Rights Act were passed. There was a focus on pride in black heritage. However, with the Vietnam War, the passing of Martin Luther King Jr., and major rebellions, music expressed the hard times the country was experiencing politically and socially. Soul was born with components of driving bass lines, percussion, gospel music, and blues music. Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul, paved the way for many singers after her time and was an important voice for the Civil Rights Act (musicforwardfoundation.org).
A few popular soul tunes are, “Respect” by Aretha Franklin, “Lean on Me” by Bill Withers, and “ I Heard it Through the Grapevine” by Marvin Gaye (musicgrotto.com)
These are just a few examples of the influence black artists and black music had and continue to have on music today. Music today reflects the music from our history. As we hear these various elements and genres within music today, we can see how black artists paved the way for much of the music we know and love.
References
“A Timeline of History-Making Black Music.” The Current Years of Music.
“Exploring the History of Black Music.” Music Forward Foundation.
“55 Best Blues Songs of All Time.” Midder the Future of Music.
“51 Best R&B Songs of All Time.” Music Grotto.
“55 Best Soul Songs of All Times.” Music Grotto.
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