1. Name the first African American labor union chartered by the American Federation of Labor. 2. What event sparked the 1960s Civil Rights Movement? 3. Name the speech that is considered the greatest speech of the twentieth-century. 4. What is considered Malcolm x’s most famous speech. 5. Name the principal student organization of the...
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1. Name the pre-colonial city where book selling was the chief industry. 2. Name the African American who led the most feared and successful armed rebellion against African American Enslavement. 3. Name the foremost black abolitionist who fought to end American Slavery and championed of women’s rights. 4. Name the scholar, intellectual, writer, poet,...
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1. Who was the first African warrior-king to unite Upper and Lower Egypt four millennia ago? 2. Name two great empires in pre-colonial Africa. 3. Name the fierce black woman and abolitionist and women’s rights activist woman who spoke truth to power with her famous statement, “Ain’t I a Woman?” 4. Who was the...
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What’s Going On is not only Marvin Gaye’s masterpiece; it was a ground breaking album for Motown and for music in general. Gaye had been affected by what he had seen and heard in Vietnam and wanted to take his sound in a new direction, using it to inform and motivate people to act....
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Since it hit the airwaves half a century ago, Kind of Blue by Miles Davis has influenced the hearts and minds of jazz fans everywhere. Its songs became instant classics, and it has also converted many a non jazz fan to appreciate the subtlety and complexity of this masterpiece. Kind of Blue has also...
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Surely, John Coltrane’s A Love Supreme has relevance today and carries a message which speaks to the necessity of improving the human condition through elevated consciousness and practice. Coltrane produced a musical statement which tapped into the spiritual consciousness of a broad range of people- student and worker, white and black, religious and non...
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Everyday, somewhere, a trumpet or cornet player tries to render an emulation of Louis Armstrong playing the West End Blues. West End Blues is one of the most famous recordings in the history of jazz for the following reasons: 1) Armstrong’s introduction showed how dazzling his skills as a trumpeter were; 2) he laid...
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As Reconstruction passed into the Jim Crow Era, predominately African-American music such as jazz and blues evolved. This music explored and reflected the lived experience of African-Americans in America. This music also began advocating for social change. Songs that promoted social activism were rare before the mid 1960s. One of the earliest of these...
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Little Richard is considered a key figure in the transition from rhythm & blues to rock & roll in the 1950s. Little Richard’s reputation rests on a string of groundbreaking hit singles from 1955 through 1957, such as Tutti Frutti, Lucille and Long Tall Sally, which helped lay the foundation for rock and roll...
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James Brown, known as “The Godfather of Soul, is recognized as one of the most influential figures in 20th century popular music. Brown was a pivotal force in the music industry. He left his mark on numerous artists and his music left its mark on the rhythms of American pop music and provided a...
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