Americas Music History

 America has been considered the best in different areas for a long time all over the world. Music is one of the areas in which many countries across the world have accepted as an area of domination by the Americans. There are different genres or categories of music that are popular among the Americans. These have spread in many countries where they are now widely listened to. American music can be traced way back during colonial period among the native inhabitants. It has continued to grow since then and appreciated from generation to generation (Grimmett, para 1).

Native American   Music

  America comprised of different communities, each of which was completely distinct from the rest. They had different social cultures, spoke different languages and their music was unique. Music was an important component of their lives. It was diverse in composition, style of presentation and the purpose it served. Most of the music during this period was gospel. Other forms included jazz, cowboy music, folk songs and rag time. During the colonial period, several musical groups were formed, for example, The Beatles and Rolling stones. Individual musicians and performers came up. Most of them were inspired by American Music.

During this period, some forms of music were thought to lead to loss of values and consequently conflicts arose. Grimmett describes this as follows:

Rock and Roll grew from the melding of Black Rhythm and Blues with Country and Western. This mixture was so volatile that several southern congressmen went on record stating that Rock and Roll was a plot to destroy American values by encouraging race micing. Originating in the Northern Urban centers in predominately black areas, Rock and Roll started out being labeled as rebellious, primitive, black music (para 3).

There were collaborations and inter-racial   mingling. This lead to new genre of music which became acceptable. It found its way in many broadcasting stations and received considerable air play. This enabled many people to listen to a variety of the music.

American Music in the 21st century

 Modern music of the 21st century, for example Rap and Hip hop traces their rhythms and beats to the native songs. It has been a transformation which emanated from simple kinds of music forms. The music became more complex   and better with time. Latin rhythms are considered the basis of modern forms of music namely; Rock, country music and Rhythm and Blues. The number of listeners has also increased   to date (Grimmett, para 5).

American music is considered to bring people together from different ethnic alignment and cultural backgrounds. The beats are considered to be entertaining and widely listened in many countries. American music has continued to be diverse and grows   to become better than before. This has been of importance to the nation. It has been seen as a nation   which has embraced change and a true leader. Most countries have developed a keen interest   in American music because it is believed to be superior (Grimmett, para 8)..

Work cited

Grimmett, Charles. “What is the history of American Music.” 2002. Retrieved on 26th March 2010. < http://www.essortment.com/all/americanmusicw_rhaj.htm>