Rock n Roll
The roots of Rock & Roll lie in the 1940s, but it doesn’t earn its name or mass appeal until the 1950s. The heart of Rock & Roll music is the synthesis of traditionally African American rhythm and blues music and traditionally white country and rockabilly music. Crossing the racial divide in America, Rock & Roll music brought both White youth and African American youth together during a time when music, much like Jazz of the 1920s. Although the races, were more publicly to be kept separate, Rock n Roll offered a common thread for the youth of the 50s.
This music transformed America, it provided the voice for a new youth culture. The music for many young people was “real,” and it spoke to emotions and problems Americans could relate to. It also addressed formally taboo subject matter such as sex and drugs, which also helped to transform American youth culture even further. Radio became incredibly important to the genre as it found that its future lie with music as television became a preferred method of storytelling. Television though also had an important role to play in the popularization of Rock & Roll, shows like American Bandstand showcased the new style of music. This trans formative movement hits its apex in the mid 1950s with the 1956 release of Elvis Presley’s first album. This album brought white Rock & Roll into the mainstream, it also helped to make the guitar the signature instrument of Rock music, and Elvis’ live and televised performances gave rise to controversy surrounding the sexually suggestive dancing of Rock music. This music created a distinct generational divide or a "Generation Gap" among Americans, many older Americans saw this music as subversive, overtly sexual, racialized, loud, dangerous, and teenagers couldn’t get enough of it.
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