McGill Final ABs- 1

Hadassah McGill Mrs. Thomas English 1103-010 8 April 2013 Musically Annotated Bibliographys "African American Spirituals- Spotlight on Music." McGraw-Hill- Spotlight on Music. Macmillan/ McGraw-Hill Education, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013.

This article seeks to explain the history of African-American Spirituals. The audience for the McGraw-Hill Education website is generally teachers and parents trying to teach their students in a different way. Though there are no known or specified authors or contributors to this website, the article gives a very good, detailed analysis of the way African-American spirituals developed. While the intended reader is someone in the role of an educator (parents, teachers, even students sometimes), the source however, comes from a link with a reference for teachers. The first segment gives the background and history of slavery. Along with being forced into slavery, blacks were forced into Christianity and required to attend church services held on the plantation. They quickly became acquainted with many Biblical stories in which they saw the correlation of the stories and their own sorrowed lives. The slaves began their spiritual services where they practiced the call-and-response form of singing worship. They would sing words or whole verses as a means to educate, communicate news or gossip, comfort mind and body, reprimand, tell a story, or give a coded signal [and many songs] were adapted as work songs. Singing together in rhythm helped laborers pass the time or maintain the speed and coordination of work movement when necessary. Some singers punctuated the music with clapping hands and stomping feet[,] since they were [forbidden] to play instruments. By the end of the article, the reader gets a strong sense of how African-American gospel music has transformed into the praise and worships songs of the twenty-first century.

McGill Final ABs- 2

I found this article to be very helpful in educating myself on the history of black folk and how and why their form of praise is different than many other cultures. The article suggests that it is through the struggles of people as they were enslaved that their soul cries out in the form of a passionate cry of praise. The fact that they were required by many plantation owners to go to church services only made the songs more religious and that is a good example in history of how these spirituals and songs of praise and worship were created.

Information from this article can be used as one demonstrative form of why African-American praise and worship music is different than that of many other cultures, more specifically, Caucasian-American (European) Christian music. I will use some of the information presented in this article to express the history and development of the Black gospel sound.

"American Gospel Music- Spotlight on Music." McGraw-Hill-Spotlight on Music. Macmillan/ McGraw-Hill Education, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2013.

In this article, there is a connection between both European American and African American praise music in which the author implicitly states that in both forms[,] gospel music is pervasive and deeply felt. Instead of going into detail about the European culture and its gospel influence, it speaks more on the development of the African-American sound/form of gospel music (just as the source above represents). It isnt until the final two paragraphs that European American gospel is incorporated perhaps not as much in the spotlight as the title of the article suggests. European American gospel has influences several music genres, particularly country and bluegrass.

McGill Final ABs- 3 I thought that this article would give my paper perspective on the way various cultures operate in the church field of music. The information on European gospel music, as skim as it may be, is helpful in my bolstering my argument that not much can be found or said to describe the origins of European/American gospel music except that it stems from the culture of the black American race. With this information I will also counter the arguments of those who disregard the American gospel music and its Southern roots and relate this to how gospel music is different among the two cultures.

Banjo, Omotayo O., and Kesha Morant Williams. "A House Divided? Christian Music In Black And White." Journal Of Media & Religion 10.3 (2011): 115-137. Academic Search Complete. Web. 27 Mar. 2013.

This Journal Of Media & Religion is a good representation of how Christian music has been created and developed over the years. This journal takes the risk of comparing and contrasting the racial discourse evident in gospel music, a predominantly African American genre and contemporary Christian music (CCM), a predominantly White American genre. It shows how music can be distinguished for the Black and White group of Christian people. The article goes a step farther in its research by analyzing 45 songs on the Billboard year-end charts for 2007 and 2008 which ultimately reveals differences in messages predicated on sociocultural influences. How one was raised or the cultural/socioeconomic influences that their environment brings has a lot to do with the kind of music that is accepted and this is exactly the kind of information needed to bolster my argument of why gospel music is so different among the African American and Caucasian cultures. Banjo explores the differences by suggesting that: Although each genre commits to a similar goal to share the Gospel, each has developed from distinct socio-cultural situations that help dene its message. Examining the

McGill Final ABs- 4 sociocultural inuence of these two genres lays a foundation for understanding the differences in message content.

Furthermore, it is a huge benefactor in the sound of music that transpires from a particular group of people. In the article, Banjo asks the very questions that shape my research which are, If the principles within the music are the same, then why is there such an overwhelming difference in racial representation? Further, how might these differences inuence the message content in the music? I was excited when I found this article because it closely relates to the exact premises for which my argument is based. The question that led me to my research is: Why do people praise differently? I am seeking to explore the difference between Black and White Christian music. Both are singing to the same God but each form is not always accepted by the other which is what baffles me and has prompted my research on this subject. I was surprised to know that Im not the only one to think this way. Though the questions may not be the same, the curiosity remains consistent. Respectively, this journal will be very helpful in my venture to prove that praises are sung differently for specific groups of people. It helps that the article focuses on the two main groups or cultures that I will be discussing or the two genres of music I will be describing: Black gospel music and White contemporary Christian music. Some of the examples of music used in this journal collectively will be some of the same songs I will focus on to differentiate the two types of praise music.

Chapman, Reynolds. "Christianity Today: Worship in Black and White." Christianity Today. N.p., 10 Mar. 2011. Web. 25 Mar. 2013.

McGill Final ABs- 5 The author of this online article goes into detail about his experiences growing up in a predominantly white church and how the church wanted to try to integrate more minorities. After trying to do this without prevailing, the author, Reynolds Chapman sought out to explore the difference in Black and White Christian praise songs (much like what I am trying to do). He visited a church community that was predominantly African-American. Noticing how they did things, he enveloped himself in the African-American culture and learned about how they sang so passionately and with great emphasis and feeling and why they sang the way they did for the Lord. Chapman said that sometimes [he] would hear gospel music on the radio or television, and it struck [him] as a curiositythe kind of music to which black people worshiped but that remained mostly irrelevant to [him] and everyone else for that matter. Not only did I gain appreciation for this article, I only wish that more people could have an open mind like Chapman and I. He sought to understand why the way things the way they were and that is more powerful than anything else because we fear what we do not know and do not understand. Reading this helped me to gain my own perspective in what I am looking for throughout my research process; I am looking for understanding. I am purely using this article as a method of support for a specific part of my argument. This is not considered a reputable or even a credible source for academic purposes. I am listing it in my bibliography so that I can refer to it and give credit for the thoughts that provoked my own. This article will be very useful in helping me to determine the very important statement mention in his article, what Chapman describes as the kind of music to which black people worshi[p] but that remai[n] mostly irrelevant to other people and other cultures. I will use this article to help bolster my argument in understanding the story behind the songs and develop a better understanding of what exactly a Black hymnal means, as Chapman suggests and I will compare it to the Christian music of Caucasian Americans.

McGill Final ABs- 6

"SPOTLIGHT: Reformed Rap And Hip-Hop." Christianity Today 55.5 (2011): 17. Academic Search Complete. Web. 3 Apr. 2013.

This section offers news briefs about rap music in evangelicalism. Ways in which Christian rap is taking its cues from Calvinist leaders such as John MacArthur and John Piper are explored. The 16th-century religious reformer Martin Luther was said to have used rhyme, meter and melody to teach the Scriptures. Religion-related activities of several rappers are described, including Trip Lee, Shai Linne and Flame (Marcus Gray). Theologian D. A. Carson cites the rare appearance of hip-hop music in Reformed churches. It provides a very brief overview of how hip-hop for the gospel genre is transitioning into the music scene and the article argues that it has a purpose. A quote derived from another source in the article states that, Reformed hip-hop is a theologically driven masculinity movement. It says no to the prom songs to Jesus in CCM, no to whiny emo Christian music for hipsters, and no to empty, shallow, individualistic Christian music lacking theological content produced out of Nashville. With this article I found usefulness in the genre of music being explored. The article talks solely about hip-hop and Rap and how it is rarely integrated in the church scene. Even though the technique is different and the sound is a little different to some people it still is a refreshed version of music. Another quote within the text suggests that The genre allows the rapper to cram loads of biblical and theological content in a single verse. I think we love hearing the Scripture 'preached' lyrically. Second, there is a 'cool factor,' which has helped bridge generational and cultural divides. But we can't explain this without acknowledging the sovereign workings of God.

McGill Final ABs- 7 This leads me to another researched based question in which I ask, If the message is the same, why then are other forms acceptable to perform in church areas, etc. and others still not? In my research paper, I will proceed to explain the ways that music is different and how it appears different for many of the same cultures and the opposite. I will use this as an example of a fresher perspective and newer form of Christian worship that is not accepted as often as others. I will use it to help me navigate through my research and answer the formidable question why do people praise differently?

""The Elite Sound"" Toluna Quick Surveys. Toluna Quick Surveys, 3 Apr. 2013. Web. 7 Apr. 2013.

In my final source, I have decided to utilize primary based research in which I set out to explore the difference of opinion between the selections of black American and white American gospel music. I wanted to find out from the millions of people that I will be representing throughout my research. I asked 10 questions most of which related to expressing particular feelings about four specific genres of music. The results show the demographics for which group of people chose each particular song/ category. This primary research will help me to develop my argument a little sharper using the direct words and feelings of various unknown individuals from all across the globe. One particular question that I used in my survey based research is, Do you believe there is a "Happy Medium" in music (what some would consider to be "Crossing-Over") or do you believe all music is trying to accommodate the preferences of a particular culture? I got a variety of answers for this question but this is the one question that received the most helpful feedback. I will utilize the answers from my findings and correlate the statistical information into my research paper to

McGill Final ABs- 8 defend my argument as I search for the reasons why praise and worship is different amongst different cultures.