Billie Holiday

Throughout the course of the semester we have learned about so many artists, and the transitions to different music genres. We have seen how music has grown throughout the years, and how artists use their songs to express their feelings, and their concerns over issues. As the years have progressed, we have seen how artists have become more vocal on issues that are have been occurring in the United States. One of the main points in history that we have seen in this course, in my opinion, has…

The Negro Movement was an artistic occurrence that was based off of many forms of art created by the African-American artists, showing what was the reality, unfair, unjust. It was provoked by different African-Americans deciding to rebel by not accepting segregation and standing up for what they believed in. this was done because they wanted to express they're feelings towards the discrimination that was going on and the only way they thought that was available was by rebelling. And many of…

Trumpeter-composer Wadada Leo Smith owns an inimitable avant-jazz voice and an out-of-the-box creativity that is patented throughout a prolific career. If last year he delighted me twice with A Cosmic Rhythm With Each Stroke (duo record with pianist Vijay Iyer) and America’s National Park, this year he strikes again with another couple of powerful albums, Solo Reflections and Meditations on Monk and Najwa, the object of this review and a bow to major American jazz artists. The album’s acute bite…

The Hidden History of Carnegie Hall One of the world’s most prestigious concert halls, Carnegie Hall has been a fixture in New York City for well over a century now. Since 1891, this iconic venue has hosted some of the most famous and respected musical artists from around the world and become known as one of the country’s most venerated performing arts centers. Few people, however, know the hidden history of the famous venue, such as the important played in popularizing rock and roll music and…

In Martin Luther King Jr.’s essay entitled The Ways of Meeting Oppression, he argues why the path of nonviolent resistance is superior to the paths of acquiescence and physical violence. In his writing, Martin Luther King Jr. uses a few different rhetorical devices. He uses loaded words and diction to show that he is educated and professional, so people would take him seriously while living in a racist time period. He also alludes to many famous and historical sources. King uses these…

Jack Kerouac’s On the Road demonstrates the limitless mobility for white American men during the Long Fifties. Kerouac establishes this idea through his characters and adds those of another race and ethnicity to illustrate their freedom or otherwise (lack of freedom) as a Mexican migrant workers. It is unconventional that Sal finds comfort in his encounters with Mexican migrant workers that he meets throughout his western travels. Although it appears to be a carefree and untroubled life,…

The Harlem Renaissance, was a time where art, music, poetry, and theater came alive. Jazz could be heard from every corner , the sounds of poetry lifted every ear. The migration of African Americans from the south to north in search of a better life. Changing art from something basic to a masterpiece full of color, design, and rhythm. Since the spark of the Harlem Renaissance, music, art, and poetry of African-Americans has evolved. “Driven from their homes by unsatisfactory economic…

The ingenuity of the individuals involved in the Harlem Renaissance continues to have an effect on modern culture. The Harlem Renaissance was a celebration of African American culture. Slavery and the Jim Crow Laws had oppressed Africans Americans for hundreds of years. The idea of white supremacy was popular quickly becoming popular in the South. Unfortunately, most African Americans lived in the South and were treated horribly. In 1890, the Great Migration began, in which many African…

Welcome to Baltimore Baltimore is one of the major cities in the U.S. state of Maryland. The city was established by Constitution of Maryland. It has the second largest seaport in Mid-Atlantic. Fredrick Douglass, Billie Holiday, Babe Ruth, Edgar Allan Poe are the famous residents of the city. The city has many architecturally important buildings such as Rembrandt Peale, Baltimore Basilica and Peale Museum. Many historic districts are also situated here such as Mount Vernon Place, Fell’s Point…

Starks mentioned an excerpt from Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday (my favorite version of the song is by Nina Simone), I instantly got excited because that poem is so powerful and timeless. At times, I had a hard time hearing, so I am not sure why Strange Fruit was mentioned, but it seemed to go with the theme…