The Popularity Of Music In The 1920's

The Jazz Age was a cultural movement that took place in America during the 1920 's (also known as "the Roaring Twenties") from which both jazz music and dance emerged. This movement matched with both the equally phenomenal introduction of mainstream radio and the conclusion of World War I. The 1920s was the decade that marked the beginning of the modern music era. Some of the popular music genres were Jazz, Dance Bands, Blues, and Broadway. The decade marked the beginning of independent record companies, smaller operations that weren’t afraid to take a chance on music and artists that the bigger companies shied away from.

The 1920’s, also called the “Roaring Twenties,” was a decade of change throughout the entire country. Although cultures among the United States vary, the wide spread of technology is something all regions of America can relate to. From East to West, changes in entertainment, sports, and radio were major contributions to the change of pop culture. The 1920’s was the beginning of a new era that shaped the way the United States forever viewed the media. A chain reaction was built throughout the twenties, making the country closer from coast to coast.

During the 1900s, passion of composing music arose and encouraged many young teens to create garage bands and elder to perceive music as career. Famous musicians like Robert Johnson, Bill Monroe, and Elvis Presley were seeking the same. Although many were composing songs, most of them adapted their own versions from many which created a list of similarities and differences between them. Most commonly similar were themes or forms yet some differentiated in delivery style or instrumentation. Many artists got more creative and used similar instruments but give a twist into the sound play. This can be seen in the script or heard in the audio of the songs “Walkin’ Blues” and “Blue Moon of Kentucky” like many others.

The framers of the constitution did many things that limited the power of the president by creating impeachment, checks and balances, executive privilege, and allowing the legislature to declare war. However they gave the president too much power because they allow the president to court packing, they allow him to announce important events to the public, and allowing presidents to issue many executive orders. A president must be at least thirty five years old, a natural born citizen, and live in the United states (U.S.) for at least 14 years. The president is allowed to serve four year terms when he or she is elected.

The majority of music lovers have started to listen to pop for its catchy beats. For instance, “It continues to dominate the charts, radio airwaves, and streaming platforms, captivating a global audience” (The Most Popular). Pop is currently one of the most popular types of music. The music listened to today is different from that of the 1920s. Different factors influenced music in the 1920s.

The 1930’s was a decade of extremely hard times, following the stock market crash and an extreme depression. In spite of the tremendous hardships in America during this decade, it also became a time of great music that is still remembered today. Jazz music was highly popular in this time, and Billie Holiday was a famous jazz performer. She stood out from many other musicians because of her intense and passionate performances. Jazz arose from “unacceptable” segments of society, but quickly grew like wildfire. We often think of the 1930’s as the decade that jazz became civilized, and famous throughout popular culture through the work of pioneering artists like Billie Holiday. People did not own televisions or cable, so radio was their main source of entertainment, and music during this decade was both up beat and a source of relaxation. “Strange Fruit” defied musical category because it was considered too artsy to be folk, and too explicitly political to fit into jazz. This is why “Strange Fruit” became such a powerful phenomenon. Many other artists later took on this song, changing the genre but still portraying the same message. Nina Simone dramatized “Strange Fruit” in the context of the Civil Rights Movement. More important artists like Jeff Buckley, Rene Marie, Labor Camp Orchestra, and many others made their own rendition on the song, still leaving all of their audiences moved by the powerful imagery of the lyrics.

The 1920’s were a time of both economic and social changes, especially in the music industry. During the 1920’s the music industry came out with a new sound, it was called jazz. People then started dancing to this new genre of music. This new dance was called the charleston and combined with jazz quickly became the most popular thing to do in the 1920’s. The 1920’s were a time of much change, especially for the music industry in which Paul Whiteman composed the famous song “Rhapsody in Blue”.

The World With a Little Jazz Can you imagine a genre that would appeal to everyone? How about a style of music that would help bring different ethnic groups together? Well, in the beginning of the 1920’s, one genre in particular had an outbreak that would change the United States forever. Jazz music modified the world with its groovy beats, calming instruments and powerful vocalists. “The 1920’s or the Jazz Age, were years of change as America recovered from World War 1 and embraced new ways of behaving and thinking” (Benson, Brannen, Jr. and Valentine Vol. 7).

Jazz was a hit in the 1920s, African Americans were given credit for leading the jazz industry, the Jazz industry had an amazing impact on many other popular cultures. Jazz was the favorite type of music among the flappers. The Jazz age was known to be powered by the prohibition of alcohol.

The music of the 1940’s was the Big Band sound like Tommy Dorsey, Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman. Popular singers were the Andrews Sisters, Kay Kaiser and many other famous ones. There were crooner style singers, including Bing Crosby, whose smooth voice made him one of the most popular singers. There was Frank Sinatra, Dinah Shore, Tony Bennett, Pat Boone, Nat King Cole, Kate Smith and Perry Como. All of these very popular singers led the hit parade. They sang the songs that went with the mood of the country in the early 50s. Many of these crooners became the idols of the decade’s later rock and roll stars, who used their influence to create a unique sound.

“Music changes, and I'm gonna change right along with it” (Franklin). Music changes as the years pass, music can change people within and that change reflects on the outside. As the popular music changed from the Victorian era of modesty at the beginning of the 20th century to the jazz age of the 1920s, so did the fashion styles of women. Between the 1900s and the 1920s, fashion styles changed from conservative to a more revealing style for the time. In the 1900s, women wore tight and modest clothing and listened to classical, more relaxing music.

The Roaring Twenties brought many cultural changes to the United States and Europe, which have had many lasting effects. The roles of women changed tremendously and alcohol became banned, but people found many loopholes, also many new inventions and ways of life came about.

The death penalty by definition is a government sanctioned practice where by a person is put to death by the state as a punishment for a crime. In the 1980 case Godfrey v. Georgia, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that murder can be punished by death. Since this case, 1,386 people have be executed. In “A Death In Texas” by award winning country music star Steve Earl, he shares his experience he had with Jonathan Wayne Nobels, a man on death row all the way up to the execution. Through the essay, Earl explains why he opposes capital punishment, although he never directly said it.

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The history of American music begins with a fundamental process of exchange through all different social lines, where diverse cultures meet, and mix. Music has and always will be defined as sounds that are arranged in a particular pattern that are played to be meaningful and pleasurable. The chronology of music began in the Medieval period, when chanting was introduced into the Church. Music has then moved its way through many stages: renaissance, baroque, classical, romantic and leading up to 20th century American music. American 20th century music is made up of a diverse number of styles that are reflected by cultural traditions and the era’s of the past. Immigrants from Spain, France, England, Germany and Ireland all contributed and brought their own unique styles to the forefront, hence creating American music. African Americans created influential musical traditions that include rhythm and improvisation that were later combined with European traditions and other indigenous music.