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Essay on african american artists
Essay on african american artists
Essay on african american artists
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Two women from two different backgrounds have so much in common yet they are so different. One grew up in Houston, Texas while the other grew up in Saint Michael, Barbados. Even though these two women have had very different up bringing the one thing they have in common is their great voices. These two women’s background, musical style, and other career ventures make them both two of the best female artist in their field.
Beyonce Knowles was born Beyonce Giselle Knowles on September 4, 1981 to Mathew Knowles and Tina Beyince, in Houston, Texas. Knowles was enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child. At the age of eight Knowles met Latavia Roberson in the girl group called girl’s tyme. Eventually Mathew Knowles trimmed the girl group to four members which included Beyonce, Kelly Rowland, Latavia Roberson, and Letoya Luckett. They changed the name of the group to Destiny Child. The group signed to Columbia Records in late 1997. In 2003 Knowles released her first solo album titled dangerously in Love. In 2004 she earned herself five Grammy awards. A year after her break up with destiny child in 2005 beyonce released her sophomore solo album titled B’Day on her birthday September 4, 2006. She released her third solo album I am…Sasha Fierce November 2008. Jon Pareles of The New York Times commented that she has the voice that defines Destiny Child, writing that her voice is "velvety yet tart, with an insistent flutter and reserves of soul belting".James Anthony of The Guardian says that Beyonce’s voice is distinctive and fast, with almost hiccuping vocal technique. Other critics praise Knowles’ range and power. Singing is not the only Beyonce makes money she is als...
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...SOS" and J. C. Penney. In 2007, Fenty signed with CoverGirl and became a celebrity spokesperson which included appearances on TV commercials and in the Barbados Tourism Authority's tourism commercials. Rihanna recorded a song written by Ne-Yo entitled "Just Be Happy" as part of a deal to promote the Happy fragrance. Rihanna also recorded a song called "Winning Women" with Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger for P&G's female deodorant Secret. In December 2008, Rihanna teamed with Gucci to appear in their ads for the Tattoo Heart Collection.
In colclusion Beyonce Knowles and Rihanna Fenty are two different women with so much in common. These women are in the height of their career’s, with the endorsement deals, the clothing line, the albums, and the movies that they have starred in these women are well on their way to become two of the richest singer’s of their time.
What do Clint Black, Bob Dylan, Toad the, Wet Sprocket, and Tina Turner have in common? Their music has its roots in not only the old murder ballads and the raw dance of poor southern whites, but also the blues, the hollers, and the sung of poor blacks. Black rhythm and blues and white country-western merged in such figure as Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry in 1950s. Rock and roll was created by blacks and whites together as a new music filled with power and mystery.
In 2013, the self-titled visual album BEYONCÉ sold almost eight hundred thirty thousand digitally in the first three days, while her sixth number one and second visual album, Lemonade, only sold four hundred ninety thousand digitally in the first week. Although Beyoncé’s second visual album wasn’t numerically successful, both show a vulnerable, an artistic, and a controversial side of Beyoncé. Both albums have surprising visuals and stunning lyrical content with either an obvious meaning or a meaning we have yet to figure out, such as the famous line, “You better call Becky with the good hair.” (Beyoncé, “Sorry”). BEYONCÉ and Lemonade show that Beyoncé tries to better herself as an artist and make herself more vulnerable.
The United States and Latin American countries are through separate languages, cultures, and borders, however, music is a source that creates a bond by merging two countries together in order to allow the two countries to become inseparable. Whitney Houston and Gloria Estefan are two artists that cater to mass audiences in each country, and each artist reached pinnacle success in the late 1980s by releasing two major, top-charting hits: I Wanna Dance With Somebody and Betcha Say That. These two hits redefined music by promoting diversity, influence, and power within their individual nations. Whitney Houston and Gloria Estefan, though they are completely different artists, share striking similarities when comparing their top hits from 1987,
Barbara Shreisand and Celine Dion, which are two of the most popular singers of all time, decided to join forces back in 1997 to sing one of the most beautiful duets of all time. They sang a song called "Tell Him." They showed the world how talented they were by singing that song.
Women in popular music have created a tremendous history in the wake of feminism. They have made their presence visible by identifying themselves as feminists. Being a woman was hard during that stage. Women were not allowed to do many things due to gender inequality such as the right to vote and to own a property. Therefore, from that moment onwards, women decided to stand up and make some changes. During the early stage of feminism, women developed their skills in popular music to create awareness. They associate popular music with feminism. Although there were racial issues between the black and white during that time, both sides continued to establish in different ways, through different genres of music. Black women focused on ‘black genres’ such as blues, jazz, and gospel, whereas white women performed in musical theatres. Female artists such as Lilian Hardin, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, and Nina Simone were among the notable exceptions of female instrumentalists during feminism. In this essay, I will assess feminism focusing on the second-wave.
Cheryl Wray and Sandy Denton, better known as dynamic rap duo, Salt-N-Pepa, from Brooklyn, New York, burst onto the all-male scene of hip hop in the 1980’s as Super Nature with “The Showstopper,” an answer track to Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick’s “The Show.” Since then, the two made remarkably incredible music together. They met at Queensborough College in New York. They were polar opposites. Cheryl (Salt) was the quiet reserved one who always had her nose in a book and Sandy (Pepa) was the loud, outgoing party girl. One day, according to Denton’s autobiography Let’s Talk About Pep, Cheryl floated around the cafeteria handing out applications for positions at her then job at Sears. Denton accepted one, filled it out, and got a job at Sears with James where she met Hurby Azor, Salt-N-Pepa’s future producer, songwriter, and manager. Since the first song, Salt-N-Pepa went on to sell many albums and win plenty of awards. They’ve inspired many women as well as most, if not all, female rap, R&B, and hip-hop artists such as Alicia Keys, Nicki Minaj, and others.
Whitney Houston is considered one of the greatest singers of our generation. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, she holds the record of being the most rewarded female artist of all time. I chose her as my topic, because she represents resiliency and tenacity, despite her troubled experiences with drugs and her personal life. Whitney Houston comes from a family with an amazing, musical pedigree; her mother, Cissy Houston, was a successful back-up singer for Aretha Franklin and Elvis Presley. Dionne Warwick is her first cousin, and Aretha Franklin is her godmother.
In today’s world, celebrities are often misunderstood, especially singer/songwriter Robin Rihanna Fenty, referred to as Rihanna. Rihanna’s sexual behaviors in her videos have been talked about in negative ways for some time now, but what people do not understand is that it is all for fame. Celebrities will do anything to keep their careers going strong. If one really took the time out to take a deep look at Rihanna, they will notice how humble she really is. After going through the abusive relationship with Chris Brown, Rihanna has struggled with gaining that strong confidence in who she is.
...hat do not judge or hate people who are different from the average Joe. There is no doubt about it that both of these women are incredible icons to many people and that in fact they do have a lot of similarities; but they also have their differences which make them more appealing to all sorts of diverse people.
Celebrities, especially musicians, have a substantial impact on the lives of their audiences. Artists use lyrics as a way to speak about meaningful topics or events, and these words can also serve as a source of identification between the singer and listener. Focusing specifically on the relationship between the artists Taylor Swift and Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and their typically female followers, an obvious difference can be found between their respective attitudes towards the role of women.
Hip-hop and rap music are commonly criticized for its anti-feminist lyrics and degrading exploitation of women in music and music videos. (Sharpley-Whiting ) Many feminists have taken action against the music industry, which produces these messages in the music they release. However, in the hip-hop genre there are plenty of successful female rappers promoting feminist views, artist such as Queen Latifah and Mary J. Blige have made the choice to condemn the derogatory culture towards women. (Oliver, 382–384) However others female hip-hop artist, such as Lil Kim or Rihanna, have decided to provide no resistance towards the deleterious depictions of women in their music and in turn sometimes exploit themselves. Due to her extreme fame, success, and controversial image, at the front of this discussion is female rapper Nicki Minaj. Nicki Minaj is challenging the common view of women in hip-hop by proclaiming feminist ideologies through the art of reclaiming the genres negative undertones towards women and by providing an opportunity for women to be seen as equals rather than objects.
Beyoncé born in September 4th 1981 is known for her fierce look and electrifying sound that has been present in the entertainment industry since she was 15 years of age. Beyoncé’s ability to perform with unparalleled confidence and exuberant passion has won her twenty Grammy awards, three world music awards, six American music awards, and eight billboard awards.
Rihanna, from her very first music videos has compelled public eyes as an effigy, an icon and a statement of music lifestyle. Her independent outlook, badass attitude mixed with a Caribbean accent has undoubtedly confined not only music but the whole popular culture of our time. Diamonds, We Found Love, Bitch Better Have My Money and S&M are some of the top songs by this epic singer. Songs that today rule bars, dance clubs, parties and of course her numerous fans.
Madonna and Maria Callas are both singers whose personality and presence are often given more weight than the strength of their technical performance. Madonna's vocal ability, Jones tells us, was largely considered "the weakest aspect of her performance" (Jones, 2008 p.165). This is evident throughout Material Girl (The Diva, 2008, track 1), where the singing quality is weak, and shows little of the vocal agility one might expect from an operatic diva. Madonna's voice, as Jones puts it, is "lacking in power and resonance" (Jones, 2008 p.165). Similarly, Callas, "battled throughout her career against vocal problems" (Philip, 2008, p.178), although Philip admits Callas' considered technical ability varied between commentators. Philip mentions an "aggressive warble" (Philip, 2008, p.178) in th...
Personally, I think Paglia argument that blames Gaga for not being sexy did not explain enough about Gaga who know how to play piano, write music, sing great live, dance, and make fashion (Needham 2). It mostly comparison to her “long-term crush” (Needham 2) Madonna who is, as Paglia stated, “the future of feminism” (“Madonna I: Animality and Artifice” 90) now seems “marooned in the past” (Needham 2). Overall Gaga is empowering everyone respect each other and love themselves, unlike Rihanna who exploiting women to be a slave for men. I believe Rihanna not only degrading women but also exploiting kids by sing to them inappropriate song for their age. Regardless if number of musicians like Rihanna increase, I think Gaga will accomplish far more success than musicians who choose to follow rather than lead.