Music And Dance: The Evolution Of African American Women

Eileen Southern’s The Music of Black Americans: A History she examines the influence that African Americans had in the holiness churches in music and worship. She initially starts with the landing of the first Africans to the colonies and she creates a phenomenal conversation of the musicians in the new world. She details the progression in the gospel, classical, jazz, rap, blues and the contributions they made.

In order to understand hip-hop dance, it is important to recognize hip-hop music and where it came from. Many scholars of rap music relate the founding of rap to African and African American oral and musical traditions, specifically African griots and storytellers. They link the rhythm of rap to the use of drums in Africa and to African American music in the United States, from slave songs and spirituals to jazz and R&B. Scholars have found very interesting connections between rap music and Black nationalist traditions (traditions historically practiced by black people that serve as part of their racial identity). Rap is similar to the “call and response of the black church, the joy and pain of the blues, the jive talk and slang of the hipsters and jazz musicians, the boasting of street talk, the sidesplitting humor of comedians, and the articulateness of black activists.” All of these African American oral traditions, including rap, can be traced back to West African oral traditions. In traditional African societies, the spoken word and oral culture included poetry, storytelling, and speaking to drumbeats. The links between rap music and African American oral and musical traditions demonstrate that hip-hop music represents more than just sound. It represents history. This aspect of it, in my opinion, makes this type of music very unique and makes it carry more value.

Dance began as a form of communication and storytelling. Thousands of years ago dancing served as a way for people to tell a story and helped distract themselves of the hardships they faced. Furthermore, dance was a form of storytelling through communication, which then turned into using storytelling through dance as entertainment. According to the History World, many dancers during the BC time danced in front of only a few people to get a story across. That later turned into hundreds of thousands of people as dance was used by many. Today, dance is also a form of entertainment and storytelling, but in a modern sense. However, today perfection and technique are stressed more than they were in the past. Yet, the passion for dance has not changed. Many dancers who share this passion also have many of the same qualities. Among a discourse community of trained dancers, one expects to find individuals who are healthy and active athletes, expect perfection from themselves through competition, and religiously attend dance performances.

African American influence in music has been an ever present and controversial subject in American history. Stemming from many different cultures, religions and backgrounds, large portions of American music was introduced by, and credited to African Americans. Although in many cases, this music was used for entertainment by the masses or majority, contrary to popular belief, black music served a greater purpose than just recreation. Dating all the way back to the beginning of slavery in the U.S. during the 17th century, music has been used to make a statement and send a message. As African American music progressed over the years, there were common themes expressed as the genres evolved. It has been an open letter to the world, documenting and protesting the ongoing oppression faced by blacks in the United States, as well as an outlet for frustration. For many African Americans, the music gave them the only voice that couldn’t be silenced by their oppressors.

Throughout the world, there have been several different dances created and people do not fully know the origins of the dances. For example, the twist was created by Chubby Checker in the 60s. There have been several different ways to show the rhythmic ability as a whole and the most different thing that people were doing was several different ways of dancing. In the late 1700s and the early 1800s, African Americans were starting to do different dances as a whole. However, they were not fully called as a dance or as they were referred to as contra dances, reels, and jigs when the cadence was called out. The difference was when there was a change in general if there was no cadence, then the African Americans would be dancing. African Americans

I have definitely learned a lot about the Evolution of Music in this class. I found it to be very intriguing. So when I was faced with the chore of deciding what I would do my report on, I chose to use the book Black Music in America by James Haskins. This book gave a detailed account of not only the music genres but it’s performers. American music is made up of music from many different types of ethnic backgrounds. What gives this book a plus is that it highlights aspects American music, and its performers. The people and events that really caught my attention were the concert singers, Minstrelsies, Jubilee songs, and brass bands. Born as a slave, a girl by the

The origins of jazz music and dance are found in the rhythms and movements brought to America by African slaves. The style of African dance is earthy; low, knees bent, pulsating body movements emphasized by body isolations and hand-clapping. As slaves forced into America, starting during the 1600’s, Africans from many cultures were cut off from their families, languages and

7) According to the author, the main attributes of African-American music and culture in the early nineteenth century were because of a common need of survival amongst each other. Music brought those enslaved a short moment of joy and peace, and much needed time away from their work to commune and celebrate each other. This culture was often misrepresented and misconstrued by whites because they attributed the music and dance to African tradition, often using this to justify slavery

One stereotype used against African Americans and ballet is that African Americans were too docile for the demands of ballet techniques. There is evidence to refute this claim. A piece of evidence is shown

With the creation of music there comes dance along with it. This dancing brings freedom a step forward and allows for individual expression. In the 18th and 19th century we begin to see the social effect of suppression. You can only imagine what it would be like to be a slave and what the effects would have had upon your psych. A way to let it all out on top of song is dance. The dance that becomes to be really expressed how they were feeling. This was also a way to keep a part of who they are still in tack, keeping thy self close to heritage was and still is crucial. Today 's depiction of the dance that took place then is a slow step by step/twisting dance. This motion personifies a sad person. Also, the conditions were harsh and the labor was back breaking. From their heritage though, their song and dance that originated from Africa had a very different kind of vibe. African Folk music which was mainly played by drums which had an expression of energy & togetherness. The drums there could be a representation of their hearts. They enjoyed life, lived at a fast rhythm with time flying by. In America, time went slow, the work and the slavery conditions bogged everything down. With dance, they were able to keep close to what was formally

artists and the soul artists provided a rich resource for the succeeding style of music

As Bame once said, “In dancing, each one finds themselves in ecstatic harmony with other participants, it heightens their sense of belonging and attachment and thereby generates social solidarity among them and the entire community”(40). Ultimately, African music and dance is a relationship that can’t be broken apart. It has been a huge part in life where everybody comes together within their communities and grow together socially and

The First black-owned record company was founded in Harlem in 1921 by Harry Herbert Pace. Its name was Black Swan Records. As with many African American ventures at the turn of the last century, times were hard and success was hard to come by. The company had a brief run of fortune but went bankrupt soon after. It closed in 1923. Though short-lived, the lessons of Black Swan Records live on to this day.

Have you ever heard of the Waltz, Foxtrot, Tango, Jitterbug, or Charleston? If so, you already know a little about dance in the “Roaring Twenties,” and how big of an impact it made on American culture then and forevermore. At a time of prosperity and flamboyant wealth, dance made citizens enjoy life again, engage in one-another, develop an eccentric new style that would carry into the rest of the twentieth-century.

One negative global implication that commercial Hip Hop in the U.S. produces is the characterization of young black women in four different personas: Diva, Hoe, Gold Digger, and Bad Bitch. When young black women hear music and see music videos that promote sexual conduct, they take on one of the different personas that is illustrated in the music and treat themselves as sexual objects. This characterizations affects the black community worldwide because this causes young black girls to be more sexually active at a much younger age, this results in teen pregnancies and