Harlem Renaissance Research Paper

600 Words3 Pages

The Harlem Renaissance, a remarkable time in history for music. The music industry has been influenced by the Renaissance for decades. It served as an inspiration for black artists who thrived during this vibrant cultural and creative movement during the 1920’s. The rise of talented musicians within this era greatly shaped the evolution of jazz, blues, and many other genres. This era symbolized resilience, self expression, and breaking barriers for African Americans while also celebrating and showing off artistic achievements. The start of the Renaissance was not an easy one. In the 1800s, Harlem was primarily an “upper class” white neighborhood, but in the early 1900s, middle class black families from another neighborhood moved in. The white people attempted to push them away, but failing to succeed in that, they left the residence. After World War I and other events following, there was a large population shift, which resulted in black pride. In the late 1900s, approximately six million African Americans from the South, strived to migrate to the North to improve their lives. The African American people wanted to change the stereotype that they were only good for manual labor. W.E.B. Du Bois was a scholar and a civil rights …show more content…

During this time, a talented trumpeter, Cootie Williams, showcased a new style of music when he played his trumpet in a crowded Harlem ballroom with Duke Ellington's band in the 1930s. With this new sound, a vibrance in African American culture sparked. The music that originated and then expanded out of Harlem in the 1920s was jazz. Well known names in American music regularly performed in Harlem: Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith, Cab Calloway, and Cab Fats Waller. Soon after, jazz became regularly played at speakeasies offering illegal liquor. Jazz has become not only an art form for Harlem residents, but for other audiences as