African American Influence On Rock And Roll

The influence of rock ‘n' roll was popularized in the 1950s and it was during this time rock ‘n' roll became somewhat of a divider but also a method of bringing people together. It pitted parents, the government, and even the mass media against teens and at the same stretch helped to erode some of the prejudices and the boundary lines between African Americans and White people. Parents in particular, disapproved the influence and message behind rock ‘n' roll, as it was a sexualized style of music. But, they also disliked the idea that the music came from African Americans irrespective of if it was a white entertainer who recorded the track. Also rock ‘n’ roll was accused of inspiring a rebellious nature in adolescents of the time. One of these supposed “acts of rebellion” was a shifting viewpoint toward African Americans, amongst teenagers. By listening to music often inspired and then sometimes …show more content…
Elvis was the most successful artist of the mid-1950s rock ‘n’ roll explosion; he was an impoverished teen from the Deep South, who came up with in the church with influences from country, blues, R&B, and the popular music of the day (Brackett, 2014). “That’s All Right, Mama” (Crudup, 1954) was the first recording Elvis did with Sam Phillips who was the owner of Sun Records (Brackett, 2014). The song has blended elements of R&B as well as country but you can’t really say the piece is either style in particular. The distinctive sound included a rhythmic guitar, a bass, and all while being enveloped in a characteristic electronic reverb effect that Sam Phillips gave to Elvis. Presley’s voice attracted is the most characteristic of African American church styles because it swoops in to pitches but he also manages to timbre from a crooner (like Nat King Cole) to a growl almost instantaneously, juxtaposing styles, while maintaining a fun dancing rhythmic feel (like Louis