It’s fallen off, one of the best music genres, Jazz.
Words cannot describe how much I, and so many others I know, love this genre of music. It built up so much of the music we know today. It’s also been a part of so much rich history in the African American culture.
Originating in New Orleans, Jazz is spontaneous and that’s what is so good about it. Combining Blues, Ragtime, brass band music, and Gospel to create a beautiful melting pot of music, and it’s almost entirely improvised. Musicians coming together and improvising their way through the melody to create something so beautiful everyone enjoys it.
One of the most amazing things about Jazz was its role during the Harlem Renaissance. This was what Jazz was made for, to embrace culture and shape, or be shaped by, political and social movements. With the Harlem Renaissance being the celebration of African American art, literature, and music, jazz was the perfect highlight to this period of African American History.
With artists like Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Bessie Smith, jazz played a huge role in the Renaissance. It was a powerful form of expression for the African American community in New York. Harlem became the best place to listen to this genre with great clubs pouring the sound of the best bands from their walls. It’s linked so much to the social issues surrounding the equality for African Americans in America, not only during the Renaissance but also when it was created. How could it have fallen off so easily?
It didn’t.
Though jazz isn’t widely played anymore, it has shaped so much of the music we listen to today. From Hip Hop and R&B to even Rock, Jazz has an influence on it all. Hip Hop has so many intersections with Jazz. The idea of sampling often came from pulling Jazz into the Hip Hop songs we know and love today. Artists such as J. Cole, Chance the Rapper, and Kendrick Lamar all pull elements of Jazz into their most famous songs, most everyone knows today. Jazz truly is the “Mother of Hip Hop”.
Even Rock artists like Keith Richards, David Bowie, and Lars Ulrich were heavily influenced by the culture of Jazz, and just the beauty of its sound. Many find these genres to be on very opposite ends of the musical spectrum, but Jazz was combined into the Rock sound to create some of the most classic songs that again, everyone knows.
Many wouldn’t think Jazz has played such a crucial role in the music industry today, but it does. You’ll find it in just about any music you may listen to on the radio or Spotify because who really listens to the radio anymore. Â