Jazz Influence On African Americans

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For many years, African American slaves were part of the American culture, until The Civil War ended. The North won the war, which settled the abolishment of slavery in the United States. Therefore, African Americans dispersed in many directions of the United States; however, many of them flocked to New Orleans, the birthplace of jazz. Jazz is American music developed from ragtime and blues, created by rhythms and ensembles. Jazz not only gave its name to an age, but also it was a unifying social force and a powerful movement in cultural identity of blacks and whites. Nevertheless, jazz was founded in New Orleans by African Americans and European immigrants. One of the most successful and famous jazz founders was Scotty Joplin. Also, the …show more content…
Blacks used music as a weapon against the oppressive whites; however, the battlefield was big. One major race relation was the abolition of slavery, which created difficult circumstances for both races. Also, the society was oppressive against blacks, which meant blacks had to adapt to resistance and fight against a nation. However, whites did give a popular status to Creoles during the time, due to their creation of jazz. Jazz was a way for blacks to maintain their humanity, because jazz brought African traditions, tools, and style into their new genre of music. A wide majority of whites during the jazz age were oppressive. Many public sanctions were segregated and did not allow blacks in the facilities, however many places did. Nevertheless, blacks did perform on stages or in concert halls in the later 1920’s, but mostly performed in speakeasies, which were owned by Jewish or Italian mobsters. The opposing side of jazz and blacks perceived a greater danger, by joining the Ku Klux Klan, which prominently gained a large amount of members during the jazz age. Middle-class whites during the jazz age were split, because of the struggle between modernists and traditionalist. According to Peretti, “Jazz music and the behavior it nurtured illustrated both the racial, social, and sexual daring of some white rebels and the greater caution of the larger mass media, a group enticed by the allure of both nostalgia and novelty.” (45) Jazz created a divide between two races and whites’ themselves. However, blacks were free during the jazz age, but they were not totally free. Blacks had little rights and were barely respected, until jazz blown up on radio stations. Most black jazz artists gained a much better reputation and respect in the community. On the other hand, middle-class whites enjoyed watching these black jazz artists perform at
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