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By Willie Brown
“Now, therefore, I, Joseph R. Biden, Jr., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim June 2024 as Black Music Month.”
Well folks, that makes it official. The President has put his seal of approval on the essence of the Black cultural experience—one that transcends race, gender, nationality, religion and political persuasion. It’s Black music, and June is the month set aside to acknowledge it.
The history of Black music in the U.S. began during slavery. Music was a way to soothe one’s soul, to make day-to-day injustices a little easier to bear. Music was called “spirituals,” and became known as gospel music. It is music that inspired faith in a Higher Power, a call that invoked the presence of God to provide strength, peace, even joy to the many slaves who endured hardships that we cannot even imagine.
Gospel music is at the root of other genres that followed under the Black music banner, including: blues, jazz, soul, R & B, funk, rap and hip hop. For old heads like me, it was R&B that really brought Black music into modern times.
Black musical icons like Quincy Jones, Isaac Hayes and Curtis Mayfield were instrumental in taking the music from radio stations and family cookouts to the big screen. Their mega soundtracks sometimes eclipsed the movies themselves.
Today, Black music is a staple in television and films, and it will most likely continue to be a major part of American life. On June 30, the BET Music Awards will once again host its annual show, featuring the many genres of music inspired by Black recording artists and musicians. And let us not forget the annual Soultrain Music Awards (usually in November), and the genius who took Black music to places in American history where it had never gone before—the late, great Don Cornelius.
Black music is one of the high points of the black experience, which is too often beset by injustice, socioeconomic hardship, and other social ills.
There are so many ways to appreciate Black music and now that Black Music Month is here, I want to encourage you to take some time out to really listen to your favorite songs. Dust off those old LPs if you still have them. Listen to a CD while you drive, or create a playlist of all your favorites.
Black music is the one thing we can always count on to raise our spirits and get us into a really good mood. Happy Black Music Month.
