African American Craziness

The 1920's were a period or rapid growth and change in America. After World War I American's were introduced to a lifestyle of lavishness they had never encountered before. It was a period of radical thought and ideas. It was in this time period that the idea of the Harlem Renaissance was born. The ideology behind the Harlem Renaissance was to create the image of the "New Negro". The image of African-American's changed from rural, uneducated "peasants" to urban, sophisticated, cosmopolites. Literature and poetry abounded. Jazz music and the clubs where it was performed at became social "hotspots". Harlem was the epitome of the "New Negro". However, things weren't as sunny as they appeared. Many felt that the Harlem Renaissance itself

The Jazz Age was a period of radical behavior and care free living. This new music structure started the crazy decade that would change American life. “In the US during the 1920s, jazz was far more than a new musical style or genre”. A Focus on culture, fashion, and mostly freedom became huge. “The Jazz Age became a touchstone for a wide range of social and cultural issues.”1 Also the freedom during the period allowed for many different ethnicities, including African Americans, to gain freedom within society. This new music

In the 1920s the expanding culture of African Americans was wildly represented by the Harlem Renaissance. It happened after the Great Migration, when they started to develop new styles of literature, art, and music (doc. 6,7). The 1920s were called the “Jazz Age” because musicians recombined blues, European- based music, and ragtime. The Harlem Renaissance changed the way African Americans were looked at by other people in the U.S. and how they lived. It did this by giving them the chance to overcome the things they had gone through in the past. The Harlem Renaissance also allowed them to express how they feeled and show their talents.

One of the most iconic happenings in this age was the creation of jazz. Jazz had always been popular in night clubs in the south but during the great migration, jazz was brought to the north. After just a few weeks, jazz was the new fad and everyone was playing it. “Jazz flouted many musical conventions with its syncopated rhythms and improvised instrumental solos…improvisation meant that no two performances would ever be the same…” (The Decade That Roared, page

The 1920s was described as “the roaring twenties”, where life was great for every American. But with an increase in economic prosperity in America in the 1920s, numerous social conflicts also arose, including organized crime due to prohibition laws, racism, and the fight between Fundamentalism and Modernism. Many things were introduced in the 1920s, such as jazz, prohibition, and mass production. Even though it benefited some, it didn’t benefit all. People like African Americans wanted equality and slowly rose up to meet it.

During the Civil Rights era, African Americans changed the way people looked at music by ending the segregation in the music world and by making a well-known “soundtrack” and influence during the Civil Rights Movement.

After World War I ended, the 1920’s brought on dramatic political and social changes. For most people, the 1920’s brought them more conflict. They did not like the new changes and were trying to keep them from happening. However, for a small group of young people the 1920’s was a great time to make progress and move forward from the conservative norm. After women got suffrage, they pushed through the double standards and tried and got jobs in factories and offices, instead of only doing domestic work. African Americans pushed through the discrimination they were facing and moved to the northern states, where they got better jobs and better opportunities to pursue their dreams in literature, art, music, and stage performance.

Thousands of white Americans came to Harlem to experience the night life. The nightclubs in New York appealed to the whites as they were very famous. Jazz music was thriving in the area. It originated in the Unites States among African-American musicians. It was at this time that jazz was at its most famous point. Many people would host rent parties which were very popular at the time. Apartment owners would hold a party and would charge a fee to those who wanted to enter. They used this money in order to pay off their rent (Worth). The influence of jazz also brought musical reviews. Soon white novelists, dramatists and composers started to exploit the musical tendencies and themes of African Americans in their works. Composers used the literary works of African-American poets in their songs. Negros began to merge with Whites into the classical world of musical composition (Wikipedia). Soon, the works of artists were being displayed in nationwide magazines. Their culture began to spread with great velocity.

Motown helped break down some racial barriers during this era. America during this era was one of gross racial stereotypes. Motown forced America to confront its own feelings about race, community, intolerance, justice and reality. Motown coincided with the emergence of the civil rights movement and both were inextricably linked. Motown was a type of prelude for Dr. Martin Luther King; it helped set the stage for the major changes that were underway. Motown broke many of the traditional stereotypes of African Americans. This music was the backbone for conversation, particularly the young, and initiated an intense re-examination of some prevalent stereotypes. It was long overdue don’t you think? My grandmother told me that when she was growing up during the sixties she can remember her mother yelling at her to “turn off that nigger trash!”, but my grandmother could’ve cared less, she had friends who were African American and there was nothing wrongful with listening to the music, but things were different in New York, not much different but forgiving enough to let children form their own opinions on the music and the artists behind it.

expanding, sharing it’s enthusiasm throughout the world. The evolution of jazz aroused the curiosity of the nation. As Blacks received their freedom, they were able to

This sparked a flame in the African American community showing that change was going to come. Events like this and the killing of Emmett Till sparked a flame in the African American community this being most formally know as the Civil Right Movement. Also a couple years after the immigration quota Cramer to an end with LBJ’s great society. But in the realms of consumerism this time period saw many revolutions. The television made it very easy for people to receive information the television was considered to be a luxury by 1955 almost every home in America had a television set. This led to an increase in TV stations the number of stations on air went from 16 in 1948 to 254 in 1954. Any type of content was able to be consumed at anytime. There also the the credit card this was a leading factor of the consumerism. Now things could be bought at anytime then payed away to be paid later. Thus Americans were able to by lavish things in which they really couldn’t afford.

Travel back to New York city during the 1920s, a melting pot of culture, a place where new ideas, technology and business mix and mingle into a metropolitan jungle, where dreams are made and stars are born. During this era, in a small neighborhood on the island of Manhattan, an explosion occurs that would forever change the course of history. The explosion would liberate an entire race that had been ignored for centuries into a new era! The explosion was known as the Harlem Renaissance. It was during this time black culture was freely expressed and openly excepted by the mainstream white culture. Today, the culture is still openly expressed but there is a sense of segregation. It affects our culture to this day! Television programs are

Since women got jobs a lot of things started changing for example their fashion. The fashion changed from long dresses that cover the ankles, and long hair.”During the day, a woman’s body was covered from head to toe. Boned laced collars, bodices were loose, pounced, and decorated with frills or rows of pintucks.”(Mee, 5) They upgraded from the old lady style to the hip and cool style. Fashion wasn’t the only thing that changed, music also changed. Jazz music became very popular, most of the African American artists we know today became famous during this time period.This time was called the Harlem Renaissance, which was basically where most African Americans were noticed for their great talents, such as playing jazz music.  “Some of the most celebrated names in American music regularly performed in Harlem—Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington, Bessie Smith, Fats Waller and Cab Calloway, often accompanied by elaborate floor shows.”

     Between 1910 and 1920, in a movement known as the Great Migration, hundreds of thousands of African Americans uprooted from their homes in the South and moved North to the big cities in search of jobs. They left the South because of racial violence and economic discrimination. Their migration was an expression of their changing attitudes toward themselves, and has been described as "something like a spiritual emancipation." Many migrants moved to Harlem, a neighborhood on the upper west side of Manhattan. In the 1920's, Harlem became the worlds largest black community; also home to a highly diverse mix of cultures. This unprecedented outburst of creative activity exposed their unique culture and encouraged

The “Great Migration” was from 1910-1930 and almost 750,000 African Americans moved into Northern cities; 175,000 moved to Harlem, which made it the largest black community in the country. This era was known for racial consciousness, racial integration, dramatic arts and painting. In addition, it was known for the explosion of music especially jazz and the blues. This outburst of confidence, expression, creativity and talent sparked the African American drive and created a “rebirth” of African American culture. A few of the famous influences were Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, Duke Ellington Johnson and Louis Armstrong.