logo
episode-header-image
Sep 2019
34m 33s

The Birth of American Music

The New York Times
About this episode

Black music, forged in captivity, became the sound of complete artistic freedom. It also became the sound of America. On today’s episode: Wesley Morris, a critic-at-large for The New York Times.

“1619” is a New York Times audio series hosted by Nikole Hannah-Jones. You can find more information about it at nytimes.com/1619podcast.

This episode contains explicit language.

Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.

Up next
Oct 2019
The Land of Our Fathers, Part 2
The Provosts, a family of sugar-cane farmers in Louisiana, had worked the same land for generations. When it became harder and harder to keep hold of that land, June Provost and his wife, Angie, didn’t know why — and then a phone call changed their understanding of everything. In ... Show More
36m 39s
Oct 2019
The Land of Our Fathers, Part 1
More than a century and a half after the promise of 40 acres and a mule, the story of black land ownership in America remains one of loss and dispossession. June and Angie Provost, who trace their family line to the enslaved workers on Louisiana’s sugar-cane plantations, know thi ... Show More
29m 17s
Sep 2019
How the Bad Blood Started
Black Americans were denied access to doctors and hospitals for decades. From the shadows of this exclusion, they pushed to create the nation’s first federal health care programs. On today’s episode: Jeneen Interlandi, a member of The New York Times’s editorial board and a writer ... Show More
39m 13s
Recommended Episodes
May 2021
The ‘Big Bang’ in Jazz History
Jazz pianist Jason Moran brings us an exploration into the life and work of James Reese Europe and how the infamous 369th Infantry Regiment - also known as the Harlem Hellfighters - crossed racial lines and brought jazz to Europe. Joe Young of New York Public Radio talks about ho ... Show More
59m 40s
Dec 2021
What Does Black Ambition Sound Like?
James Reese Europe was already famous when he enlisted to fight in World War I. But the band he took to the frontlines — as part of the famous 369th Infantry Regiment, also known as the Harlem Hellfighters — thurst him, and Black American music, onto the global stage. Moran sits ... Show More
50m 55s
Feb 2021
Lift Every Voice and Sing
The so-called Black National Anthem was composed in 1900, and it’s provided a soundtrack to Black life ever since. For this special Black History Month episode, CNN’s Don Lemon speaks with Rep. James Clyburn, historian Prof. Imani Perry, and Howard University choir conductor Eric ... Show More
33m 12s
May 2024
16 | America Has A Problem | For Real, For Real
Black culture is a pivotal pillar of broader American culture. From fashion, to language, to being the sonic foundation to much of American music. In this special episode, our hosts do a deep dive into country music and how its roots are grounded in Black music. Using Beyoncé’s l ... Show More
33m 50s
Aug 2022
The Robust Return of Beyoncé
A deep dive on “Renaissance,” her relationship to queer music communities and her framing of authorship. Guests: Joe Coscarelli, Wesley Morris, Jon Pareles and Salamishah Tillet. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via ... Show More
56m 28s
Mar 2021
New Jazz That Agitates for Change
A conversation about strong recent debuts, and how canon and community can be in tension. Guests: Giovanni Russonello and Marcus J. Moore. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://w ... Show More
49m 54s
Jan 2024
An Elastic and Impressive Moment in Jazz
A rundown of impressive recent releases and a look at who benefits (and suffers) when artists working outside formal jazz idioms are lumped into conversations about the genre. Guests: Marcus J. Moore and Giovanni Russonello. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Pod ... Show More
57m 19s
Feb 2016
Popcast: Macklemore’s Aesthetic Mission
Jon Caramanica chats with the rapper about the role of music in creating change. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. Fo ... Show More
56m 26s
Jun 2020
The Long, Complicated History of ‘Urban’ Music
As the music industry reckons with racial inequality, one of the first old structures to fall has been a term that dates back to the 1970s. Guest: Nelson George. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite pod ... Show More
58m 26s
Aug 2022
A Renaissance in American Hardcore Music
A look at the recent burst of bands and how the scene operates as music, ethic and feeling. Guests: Stereogum's Tom Breihan and The Ringer's Chris Ryan. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app ... Show More
54m 7s
Listen to millions of songs and podcasts on Anghami