The immediate origins of rock and roll lie in the late 1940s and early 1950s through a mixing of the genres of blues, country, R&B, folk and gospel music. Alan Freed, a disc jockey based in Cleveland, Ohio is generally credited with first using the phrase rock and roll in 1951, though the phrase was in constant use at time in lyrics of R&B songs of the time. The phrase rocking and rolling has its origins in slang for dancing or having sex. Many early rock and roll hits were re-writes of earlier R&B or blues songs. Black music was still taboo on radio stations, so producers and artists began making white versions of black music. In 1955, Bill Haley’s Rock Around the Clock became the first rock and roll song to top the charts. The song became one of the biggest hits in history, and hordes of teenagers began flocking to hear Haley and his band The Comets. Blues would continue to inspire rock for decades with great acts like Cream, The Yardbirds and Led Zeppelin drawing their inspiration from musicians like Robert Johnson and Skip James.

Rock and Roll influenced lifestyles, fashion, attitudes and language. It also appeared at a time when racial tensions were coming to a head in the United States, the music contributed to the civil rights movement as both black and white teenagers followed the music. It was a fresh sound which spawned fresh ideas and approaches which paved the way for the swinging sixties.

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American classical music, also known as jazz is a diverse genre of music that stems from native American and African music. Most jazz is inspired by blues music. Jazz first became popular in the early 1920’s in clubs in cities like New Orleans and Chicago. In the 1930’s Jazz was so popular that there were even white jazz singers. Big bands came into play such as Ben Goodman and Glen Miller, although some viewed them as swing more than jazz.

Jazz led into more conventional methods that made it like today’s pop groups. Only then it was called Be Bop. The jazz music was becoming more loose and more harmonized.

Be bop was not what you would call dancing music, but it was more to actually see the performers. This made each performer strive a little harder to be the best, because without the dancing it really was about the talent.

Of course jazz music was often sad and was about heartache and troubles of life. Most of the music was based off of the performers lives. A lot of performer’s died from drug and alcohol abuse. Jazz is based off of a classical background and to play it well you have to learn the chords and scales of the songs. It also takes improvisation and an imagination. It can be quite difficult, but for some jazz is just in the blood.

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Rap is the culture of Afro-Americans, the continuation of their language and traditions. Rap is a mixture of speech and music, actually it is speech laid on music or beat it’s better to say. And when we claim that people are united through music, meaning every single human being on this planet, rap unites the ones close to blood by music and then everybody else, either welcoming or being hostile to a newcomer. What attracts people in rap? Is it catchy? Maybe. Those non-natives to rap often state the flow of speech is too quick and it is difficult to differentiate the words. Sometimes it seems rap music is only for those from the cradle. Foreigners are not invited. Rap is classified as urban poetry of lyrical resistance. Thus it is not the music for village like country music. It is the gathering power of those united by music in big cities. The aim is to resist the grieves because misfortunes are more dramatic and numerous in urban areas. Rap does not only speak to the mind and emotions, but speaks to the society all around people, for people. If the words or courage to say those words are not there, the subconscious takes over and the Rap lyrics kick in.

But once captured by the beat, most people - mainly younger ones - begin to hear the words, and the words may describe just how they are feeling that day. If the boss came to work with an agenda to screw everyone, some people will “feel” the words and the beat, especially when enclosed in a car doing 70 on the freeway. It’s something about riding with the music turned full-blast that has a way of absorbing the mind and supplying a means of temporal escape. Some songs have innocent words that impress upon the mind to be released later at the water cooler. Some choruses are catchy and when sung by certain artist will stay within the subconscious long after. Various rappers have unique voices that some people find attractive or along the same vocal tone as their own voice, which it makes it easier to sing along.

First goes the beat, and then goes the lyrics! It is not as smooth and tender as classical music, not as glossy as pop, but it has the scream of pain of real emotion of the world’s harshness. One may even state that rap is the most pain expressing music style. Those who sing it or it is better to say read it revive their feelings not only concerning love, as most of the other styles do. Their message is about life and the problems, especially the ones of the Afro-American people. The music of pain and oppression, rap is a remedy to the latter.

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