Summary Of Race, Rock, And Elvis

Chapter 4 in the book ‘Race, Rock, and Elvis’ by Michael T. Bertrand, focused primarily on the creation and advancement of rock ’n’ roll, particularly the impact Elvis had, in regards to the racial intolerance of the south. The author “concludes that a generation that came of age after WW2, in creating and consuming rock ’n’ roll, broke with a past traditionally tied to racial subordination”(11). Some of the main issues discussed in the chapter were how rock ’n’ roll came about and what it did for both the music industry and social movements in the South, how people responded to the genre, and why Elvis was accepted while other artists were not.

In the 1950’s the civil rights movement was underway and the South began to undergo major social …show more content…
Some believe that any connection between rock ’n’ roll and the civil rights movement is coincidence, and that the popularity of certain songs was due to the fact that both races found the music enjoyable. However, after the war, race became extremely prevalent in popular music. Rules regarding race and music were not as clear then as they are now. When the entertainment business began to capitalize on ethnic, racial, or subregional musical forms for a periodic revitalization of popular music (95), young southerners had to confront the social and racial issues attached to this new genre of rock ’n’ roll before they could endorse the music. These reactions then taught future artists and audiences how to react to such music in the future. As both rhythm and blues and rock ’n’ roll became more relevant, traditional music categories disappeared and different music genres and artists began to integrate. National media exposed youth to various categories of the music business, and they became more pop minded. Young artists like Elvis Presley began to approach black culture openly, closing the racial gap even further. These artists wanted to identify completely with the rhythm and blues singers that they emulated, they were not making fun of …show more content…
Although he was a young white boy, he was said to sing like a negro and was intent on showing his black roots. He gave credit to the colored spiritual quartets down south which gave him inspiration for his music. Elvis’ style was both country and R & B and he acknowledged that there were artists who were doing the same thing as him long before he started creating music. Although Elvis became extremely popular over time, he had difficulty being accepted at first because rhythm and blues artists thought his work was too hillbilly, and country artists thought he sounded too black. His music was often called “mongrel” or “rockabilly” music and it infuriated country fans when he started making the top charts. Madison Keisker was the first person to agree to record Elvis, and he arguably gave Elvis the publicity he needed for his career, as well as the genre of rock ’n’ roll to take off. Soon after, jockey’s began to incorporate rock ’n’ roll on the top charts to appease listeners new preferences. The industry turned it’s back on traditional fans and focused on pleasing younger listeners. They believed they needed to keep up with Elvis or they would go out of business. Elvis “crossed a line that was forbidden and questioned the racial system that kept blacks and whites apart”(113). He did not care that their may have been severe ramifications for presenting himself in a manner that contradicted the southern

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