African-American music
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African-American music is a broad term covering a diverse range of musical genres largely developed by African Americans and their culture. Its origins lie in musical forms that developed as a result
The Banjo Lesson by Henry Ossawa Tanner, 1893
Enslaved Africans picking cotton in the United States, 1840
Congo Square African Drum 1819 Latrobe
Slave dance to banjo, 1780s
Rock and roll
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Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. The origins of rock and roll are rooted in a blending of African-American musical gen
African-American music
…of rhythm and blues (R&B). R&B became a pivotal genre, blending elements of jazz, blues, and gospel, and it laid the groundwork for the evolution of rock and roll in the following decade. In the following years, this musical tradition expanded during the Civil Rights Movement. New technology for recording and…
Sign commemorating the role of Alan Freed and Cleveland, Ohio, in the origins of rock and roll
Disc jockey Alan Freed is credited with popularizing the term "rock and roll" and introducing the genre across racial barriers in the 1950s
Chuck Berry in 1958
Big Joe Turner and Pete Johnson's record "Roll 'Em Pete" is regarded as a precursor to rock and roll.