R & B Vs Gospel Music Essay

Is there a wall between R&B and Gospel music in this modern day and age of music crossovers and merges? With similarities such as the historical context of the genres and the powerful and emotive deliveries, the line between R&B and Gospel music can sometimes be indistinguishable, but the differences that separate the genres such as the production and performance techniques and lyrical content can alter the audience’s reception and perception of the genres. R&B has a wider and more general listener demographic mainly due to its popularization via contemporary artists, whereas Gospel’s Christianity based history tends to draw in more listeners who are of that denomination. R&B music also tends to develop and change more often than Gospel music,

Gospel music originated in the United States as far back as the seventeenth century through the Black oral tradition. (“Gospel Music”, 2018) Illiterate African slaves barred from education by their owners as a means to prevent rebellion and awareness used music as a form of communication and self-expression because of their highly restrictive and oppressive conditions. Instead of lamenting on their seemingly inescapable and terrible situations, their music expressed hope for a better tomorrow through the embracement and trust of God and their faith, which is the basis for all Gospel music. Hymns and spirituals were major influences, and a prime example of this included “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot,” an American spiritual composed by Oklahoma freedman Wallace Willis. The lyrics are said to have been a reference to the Underground Railroad, which was the freedom movement that helped African American slaves escape from the South into the North. (“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot”,