Black Music as Social Commentary

OWA views Black Music as Social Commentary, a musical expression that supports change. As social commentary, Black Music signifies in numerous ways: it frames an era as in Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On;’ it might comment on current affairs like Gnarls Barkley’s “Crazy;” it might tap the changing same signified in Aretha’s “Respect.”

Black music as social commentary is a common sense notion consistent with the holistic way that African people have traditionally made and enforced their definitions of reality. Black music comments on issues of love, fairness, the transcendence of the human spirit, as well as a variety of contemporary and historical phenomenon. Insights, bright moments, and lessons reside in a variety of Black popular musical expressions.
 
Middle Passage: The Middle Passage refers to the abduction, imprisonment and shipping of African children, women and men to the Americas (North, Central and South) to build the respective economies. This digital story is built on the O’Jays “Ship Ahoy” and the images are from a variety of sources
Educational Change: This digital story is built on the definitional “Wake Up Everybody”—Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes with Teddy Pendergrass on the lead. I used this digital story to introduce a lecture/discussion I did for the National Education Association. The images are from a variety of sources.
DuBois Biography: W.E.B. DuBois is most popularly known for his groundbreaking book, The Souls of Black Folk (1903). He published numerous books and by some accounts laid the foundation for the field of sociology. He was a scholar/practitioner par excellence. This digital story is built on the John Coltrane’s still soaring contribution, “A Love Supreme.”