Farewell…

This semester has been full of laughs, loaded with information, and left me questioning a lot of things. I learned about the different musical genres that African Americans created and continued to progress. Genres such as: Negro Spirituals, Folk, Ragtime, Blues, Jazz, Funk, Techno, R&B, Soul and Rap. Often times, though they were the innovators of these new musical styles and genres, they were not properly compensated for there creations. Instead, white people would either, steal the music and profit from it, or steal the music, create their “own version” of the sound and profit from it. I already knew about the process of commodification but actually learning more about this concept, and how they did it to EVERY genre, was extremely enlightening. I also loved the class debates, which gave me an opportunity to hear other opinions as well as express my own. The saxophonist that came in was phenomenal and I really enjoyed his music as well. Overall, I am glad that I took this class in that I feel everyone should know the basic origins and order of African American Music which is American Music, It is vital and I am glad to know it now.