In today’s class the prominent topic was minstrel shows and blackface. Minstrel Shows created stereotypes or African Americans that still remain prevalent today. While these characters have changed the background remains the same. The Jezebel character is shown through the video vixen. Mammy can be seen through characters such as Madea. Minstrel Shows were the beginning of the career of African Americans. Until the early 20th century African Americans were portrayed on stage but they were not allowed on stage. While unfortunately they were derogatory and offensive roles, African Americans knew it was their way into the theatre. Without actors such as Willie Best and Bert Williams we would not have such as Lawrence Fishburne, Denzel Washington and Sidney Poitier.

The question of “Who owns history” was asked. I believe that history is told and believed by the side who won. There are two sides to every story yet the one often told is the story of the side who won so unfortunately we can never completely understand what has happened. For example, we only understand the viewpoint of the Colonies during the American Revolution with very little input as to what happened on the opposing side, Britain. This poses the thought of what has been hidden from us in history. Even when looking at music we often do not see everything that happens unless the other side releases the information. We do not see all the behind the scenes work behind the music. It is not common knowledge that Blurred Lines was made from Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up”. The winning side of these songs would be Blurred Lines because it was a bigger song.

The intro class featured Lil Walter’s song My Babe. The song was featured in a movie named Cadiallac Records that showcased the creation of Chess Records and its artists such as Etta James, Lil Walter and Chuck Berry. This time period shows the introduction to Mowtown. Blues singers and harmonica and guitar players were born through Chess Recods paving the way and creating a new style that was not popularly known throughout the United States. They brought the south across the country.

The discussion about public vs private self was extremely interesting. When the topic of slavery came into play, interracial relationships immediately came to mind. The public self and private self were deemed separate upon the legal abolishment of slavery. However, this did not apply to any and everyone. Private relationships between two races remained illegal and could even be deadly for some. The relationship between black men and white women often cost men their lives. So why is it that when the two selves were deemed separate it did not apply to everyone. It seemed that no matter the legal status of African Americans, the private self would not be able to remain private no matter their legal status.

One of the phrases that caught my attention was the dumbing down off music. I believe it is true in that music no longer really needs to make sense in order for people to listen to it. When looking at music of today in the genre of rap alone the evidence it clear. Mumble rap almost seems to reign supreme in the industry today with artists such as Kodak Black, Lil Yachty and 21 Savage being some of the most top rated up and comin artists. For the most part these artists make songs and the beats are almost the same with very little difference in the songs and the lyrics not completely being comprehensible or even making sense.  Why do these songs continue to find their way into mainstream media? These songs have been dumbed down to the point that people no longer need to think in order to enjoy the songs. With artists such as Kendrick Lamaar and J.Cole that make music with a message that you can sit and listen to but can’t help but to hear the message they are trying to get across through the song. While not all music has been “dumbed down” I find rap to be a dominant genre that displays this thought.