Juke in the Box
The jukebox turned listening to music into a performative act. With a single coin, listeners could share their musical taste with everyone in the place.
The Barrier-Breaking Ozark Club of Great Falls, Montana
The Black-owned club became a Great Falls hotspot, welcoming all to a music-filled social venue for almost thirty years.
In the Mood for “Fake” Music?
In 2017, it was reported that Spotify was promoting fake artists on its platform. But this type of approach to “content creation” wasn’t new.
Sex (No!), Drugs (No!), and Rock and Roll (Yes!)
In the 1980s and 1990s, Christian heavy metal bands used head-banging music to share the politics and values of evangelical Christians with America’s youth.
Sheet Music: the Original Problematic Pop?
A Johns Hopkins University curator of sheet music and pop culture discusses a “Middle East-inspired” sheet-music collection that’s anything but.
Performing Memory in Refugee Rap
Hip-hop and other performative arts offer Southeast Asian American immigrants a way to construct richer narratives about the refugee experience.
Fencer, Violinist, Composer: The Life of Joseph Bologne
As a musician of color during the Ancien Régime and French Revolution, Joseph Bologne, Chevalier de Saint-Georges, lived a life unlike those of his peers.
She’s All About That Bass
It’s not your imagination: a disproportionate number of women really do play bass guitar in rock bands.
Christy’s Minstrels Go to Great Britain
Minstrel shows were an American invention, but they also found success in the United Kingdom, where audiences were negotiating their relationships with empire.
The Accordion Blues
Though many associate the accordion with polkas and klezmer, the instrument played an important role in Black music after its arrival in the United States.