Who said that a white girl can't play a Saxophone?
I've been listening to music for as long as I can remember. I'm not much of a fan for American pop culture music, because it's just not my thing. Maybe that is a good thing actually. I grew up listening to old skool hip hop back in the 80's. That was back when rappers actually had to have talent and creativity in order to produce good songs unlike today Now some may think that, because I am black that it would only be natural that I listened to "black music". Well to those who think that, they would be wrong. I also listen to alternative rock, dance, drum & bass and electronic music. The saying goes is that you can't judge a book by it's cover, and that also goes for people and music. When I was growing up in Baltimore, one of my good friends Stephan who was black use to listen to mostly 80's rock music. Some of his favorite bands were Rush, Iron Maiden and Def Leopard. I use to go over his house to hang out. The music he listened to really didn't bother me. I actually liked it. In school, some black kids would tell Stephan that he needed to listen to "black music". Stephan normally just said that he listens to what he likes. I respected that, and it never dawned on me to ever tell him what type of music he was suppose to like due to his skin color. To me it was like whatever floated his boat. As I got older, I followed my own tastes in music. I started getting heavy into club and electronic music genres. When I was 18 years old, I came across a song by an artist out of Detroit by the name Derrick May. It was a Detroit House style song called Strings Of Life".
I was playing that song to death when I got a hold of it. Other blacks were puzzled as to what I was listening to, and their comments to me was that I was listening to "white people music". Of course I just looked at them as if they were a three eyed cyclops. Now because of their ignorance, they didn't know that Derrick May was actually black, I've said that nothing can expose the stupidity of people faster then the issue of race. It's like a dumbing down agent. Speaking of Detroit, I remember reading and hearing about the rapper Eminem. Many black hip hop artists and fans didn't take him seriously, because he was white. Their claim was that whites didn't know anything about rap music. He had to go through a lot of crap early on in his career, because blacks dismissed him due to his race rather then give his music a chance. Well, he made fools out of those people and proved them and the music industry wrong. The reason I am bringing this all up is because of very senseless incident which happened recently. What would you think if you knew of a young white girl who played the Saxophone? You all would say it's no big deal right? I feel the same way. Apparently that wasn't case for some young black females who took exception that a white girl would play the saxophone. Back on June 26th in Milwaukee Wisconsin, 26 year old Cassandra Struves who is white was playing her Saxophone outside the Summerfest grounds as a street performer. Three black females approached her and attacked her with one saying according to Ms Struves " a white girl shouldn't play that sort of music."
So I suppose these three black females ignorantly assumed that blues music is strictly the domain of blacks and can not be played by another other person of a different race which isn't black. This is an example of how racism can bring out the pure concentrated stupidity in people. Music belongs to everybody. People have the right regardless of race to listen to and play the type of music that they like. Now of course these three black females would be the first to shout up and down that they aren't racist. I've heard that scratched record too many times.
I was playing that song to death when I got a hold of it. Other blacks were puzzled as to what I was listening to, and their comments to me was that I was listening to "white people music". Of course I just looked at them as if they were a three eyed cyclops. Now because of their ignorance, they didn't know that Derrick May was actually black, I've said that nothing can expose the stupidity of people faster then the issue of race. It's like a dumbing down agent. Speaking of Detroit, I remember reading and hearing about the rapper Eminem. Many black hip hop artists and fans didn't take him seriously, because he was white. Their claim was that whites didn't know anything about rap music. He had to go through a lot of crap early on in his career, because blacks dismissed him due to his race rather then give his music a chance. Well, he made fools out of those people and proved them and the music industry wrong. The reason I am bringing this all up is because of very senseless incident which happened recently. What would you think if you knew of a young white girl who played the Saxophone? You all would say it's no big deal right? I feel the same way. Apparently that wasn't case for some young black females who took exception that a white girl would play the saxophone. Back on June 26th in Milwaukee Wisconsin, 26 year old Cassandra Struves who is white was playing her Saxophone outside the Summerfest grounds as a street performer. Three black females approached her and attacked her with one saying according to Ms Struves " a white girl shouldn't play that sort of music."
So I suppose these three black females ignorantly assumed that blues music is strictly the domain of blacks and can not be played by another other person of a different race which isn't black. This is an example of how racism can bring out the pure concentrated stupidity in people. Music belongs to everybody. People have the right regardless of race to listen to and play the type of music that they like. Now of course these three black females would be the first to shout up and down that they aren't racist. I've heard that scratched record too many times.
posted by Alpha Conservative Male at 9:16 PM
5 Comments:
I'm in my mid-50's and grew up enjoying a very wide variety. Starting out in the 60's I most enjoyed Supremes, Temptations, Smokey Robinson, Aretha, then Jackson5 and other Motown sounds. I quickly latched on and enjoyed different sounds such as Beatles, Fifth Dimension, Friends of Distinction, as well as hearing mom playing Mahalia Jackson and other religious, and easy listening O.C Smith (Little Green Appples). I had siblings that were playing Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith on keyboards, and who really dug Lou Rawls singing long before he was well known for pop in the 70's. From a child I could enjoy Frank Sinatra, Barbara Striesand, and in the 70's I adored Shirley Bassey, and also experimenting with classical music and easy listening. The 1970's was so full of creative bands, and in high school and college years I ate them up including O'Jays, Stylistics, Isely Brothers, Average White Band, Patti Labelle, Chaka Khan, and dozens of others. Jazz was a natural thing for me to like, but particularily more modern smooth jazz (I know about old school Charlie Parker, Miles, Sarah Vaughn etc but did not go back to that). I played to death some album by Jazz Crusaders called Chain Reaction (especially before going to parties). I have no problem remembering my two favorite albums of the 1970's which were in the genre of “Fusion Jazz.” They were Visions Of A New World by Lonnie Liston Smith, and Stepping Into Tomorrow by Donald Byrd. They were creative instrument sounds with more vocal “sounds” than singing. Some people might not “get” those two but I thrived on it. In the 70's I also listened to saxaphone by Grover Washington, and also two white guys: (smile) David Sanborn and John Klemmer. Later I must say rap and hiphop has been “0” to me (actually negative). It to me is hard on the ear, not flowing, not musical, and too often crude or savage. Today, the genre's I prefer are light pop, light country, smooth jazz, and Latin samba (like that bongo beat, and like Gloria Estefan). My favorite singers/entertainers are Sammy Davis Jr, Shirley Bassey, Frank Sinatra, Barbra Streisand, and (when she is not too risque, Etta James, At Last singer). Topping all that, as a Christian today nothing beats singing spiritual songs in church. As black man in America this is a summary of my experience in music.
p.s. Earlier, I failed to mention my favorite (boogie) band of the 1970's: Earth, Wind & Fire.
CB-The music he listened to really didn't bother me. I actually liked it. In school, some black kids would tell Stephan that he needed to listen to "black music".
According to the history of rock-n-roll it was originally "black music", primarily from a combination of other black genres such as blues, jazz, and gospel music, combined with Western swing and country music. Earlier performer in the genre, Chuck Berry comes to mind.
As for the women who attacked the white sax player telling her that she has no right to play that kind of music (jazz), it never stopped Benny Goodman, a white man who was best known for his hit "Sing, Sing Swing", who's band was a combination of black and white performers. However, since Goodman was Jewish, he had his share of prejudice and discrimination along with his black band members everywhere he went. Another white jazz performer whom I could think of too was Glenn Miller,who disappeared while he was traveling with his band from United Kingdom en route to Paris.
So, did the women who attacked this sax player because she was white for playing "their music" or were they offended because she was playing Cab Calloway's "Minnie The Moocher"? I think too it's a catchy song.
-Big Pop
This is what happens when history (black history) is not taught, or taught in the wrong way. Obviously these three women (using the term women loosely in this case) are beyond ignorant, and downright stupid.
First and foremost, all music created in America has always crossed the racial divide. Although the person performing the music might be of a certain "race", the music and the style really doesn't have a "race."
All popular American music is rooted in a mode called "The Blues", which was created and defined by Black musicians in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Yet, during that time many white musicians collaborated with and "hung out" with black musicians as they learned and made music together.
However it was the record companies that segregated the music into white and black for the purpose of marketing to the American audience. I believe that it's for that reason we've had the idea of "white music and black music" that persists to this day.
If the three stupid women had been taught that music is a universal language performed and enjoyed by all, they wouldn't have thought twice about what the white girl was playing. Instead they only know of the racial divide that was created (and in some ways perpetuated to this day) by record companies and some large corporations.
I like them also. It's sad that young people of today do not have any appreciation for music from different eras in our history. I bet if I was to play Jimmy Hendrix, they wouldn't have any idea what that is.
p allen "According to the history of rock-n-roll it was originally "black music", primarily from a combination of other black genres such as blues, jazz, and gospel music, combined with Western swing and country music. Earlier performer in the genre, Chuck Berry comes to mind. "
Very true allen. However Rock and Roll of today has no traces from it's roots, especially when it comes to heavy metal, alternative rock or hard rock. Even though his music was before my time, I am a fan of Little Richard. I can only speculate, but I believe that rock and roll back in it's glory days had to have been much better then rock music of today. For one thing, back then musicians didn't have amplifiers, mixers and other equipment to distort the harmony of the music. It was just pure music without the noise.
P Allen "All popular American music is rooted in a mode called "The Blues", which was created and defined by Black musicians in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Yet, during that time many white musicians collaborated with and "hung out" with black musicians as they learned and made music together. "
I remember when Steven Tyler and Aerosmith got together and did a project with Run DMC back in 1986 to do the remake of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way"
that was a historic moment in music
It was the first time that hip hop and Rap music came together. But from that experiment, a new genre of music was eventually formed years later. The most noted bands I can think of are 311, Linkin Park,N.E.R.D, ICE T and Cypress Hill.
Post a Comment
<< Home