Folk Post Review by Sidnee Salter

Review on "Folk Music: African American Legacy" by Zoe Watkins

     Prior to reading Watkins’ post, I had a small understanding as to what folk music was. I knew that it was form of song that was created by African Americans in the mid-20th century. Also, I understood that folk music was not something that was written by one artist and learned by the general public. It was something that was African American people made and sang as a whole, in which they passed folk songs from generation to generation. 

     After reading Watkins’ post about folk post, I was able to have a more clear understanding of what folk music consisted of and what is considered folk versus what is not. For example, Watkins’ post states that the elements of folk music include call and response, polyrhythms, patting juba, and acculturation. She even included two youtube videos that showed examples of folk music. However, I would have liked to see more facts. At some points, the author’s opinion on the origin of folk music tends to shine through and it’s a little unclear what is fact and what is opinion. Also, I would’ve liked to see more of the timeline of when folk music originated and when it got popular over the years. Lastly, I would’ve liked to see some examples of famous artist or folk songs, if any. Otherwise, the piece was great at clarifying what exactly folk music is and what it consists of. 

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