The Black Aesthetic Analysis

Black music has been stolen throughout history and rebranded as a “white” genre. There is nothing white about rock & roll. The truth must be told about the origins of our culture and we must acknowledge those who have contributed to it. The university sets out to tell the whole truth and present a variety of perspectives in order to fully comprehend historical events. However, throughout history many perspectives have not been shared. An ancient African proverb states, “Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter.” The oppressed minority will not have their perspective adequately shared, when the oppressive majority is telling the story. The role Africa and its people have played in developing …show more content…
Black art has three main components. It must be committed, collective, and functional. To achieve this, art needs to have political and social relevance that creates a dialogue between its viewers. Manuela Karenga defines the Black aesthetic as a “distinctive mode of aesthetic expression by which it can be identified and standard for Black art to be socially relevant” (Karenga) . Two schools of thought developed around Black aesthetic: The detached art school, and the committed art school. Thee detached art school emphasizes art for art sake, with no focus on its political or social relevance. However, the social and political relevance is absolutely fundamental in art and is inherently contained within all art. This is what the committed art school is concerned with. Art is political and should be produced for the sake of humanity, not solely for …show more content…
It has a source, which is Africa. Through imperialism, colonialization, and slavery, African music made its way on a journey to the Deep South. There, it evolved and transformed. The music went through a cycle death and rebirth many times as it developed into Rock & Roll. Because it was produced primarily by black artists in its infancy, rock music faced many challenges as well. It is still undergoing a journey because it has not returned to the source. The African word Sankofa relates to this struggle. The music was stolen from Africa and must be reclaimed.
As a society we must be conscious of the staggering impact Africa and its people have had on our culture. We can trace our cultural and ancestral roots back to the continent of Africa. The contributions of Black men and women in America have been overlooked, underappreciated, and undervalued. We must return to the source of our culture in order to find the whole truth, not just one perspective. Black studies seeks to discover this truth and it is important that the discipline is maintained and strengthened throughout the academic