Compositions & Coffee Presents: "Creative Soul Digest"
It's A Vibe Friday
Hey Friends and Family It’s a Vibe Friday and my music is already playing in the background. Here’s a tidbit about me. I LOOOOOOOOVE TO DANCE and SANG! My mother use to tell me stories about going to the store and not being able to keep my butt still even in the elevator (still that way today btw just minus the elevator). I belt out in the car FULL ON MARIAH CAREY TYPE BELT. Soo around the same time every year I warm the pipes to get ready to sing for 25 days straight. FACT.
To carry on our discussion of Christmas music, It’s a Vibe Friday is all about soulful Christmas music. Christmas music in the black community, as you all know, had a different sound and even the lyrics were a reflection of our community. Songs like Santa Claus Goes to the Ghetto and Soul Holiday’s are just a few of the ones I’ll have an extensive list at the end of this post to illustrate the difference. In my traditional fashion before we get into the goodness of our music I have to hit ya’ll with some facts and history so let’s dive in…
History of Black Christmas Music
Christmas spirituals were different from traditional Christmas carols for the simple fact that spirituals were written and sung by slaves. One scholar noted that, “the powerful resonance in these spirituals is unmatched because of the passion of the people who sang them.” Most Christmas spirituals were also sang in present tense rather than past tense which provided an immediacy and power to the song as if to reflect current and real live events. In other words, our people have always known the power of praise, focusing on what really matters in the here and now. Christmas spirituals were about evoking a sense of gratitude for the savior. Spirituals were also sung with passion since slaves were thought to have a more intimate understanding of the nativity story because they identified with the conditions into which Christ was born. Coming from a foreign land to be placed where they were despised and enslaved in the same way that Christ was born as a refugee child with people seeking to kill him. Spirituals reflect a people who have the power to convey a message and evoke emotion and feeling in others that contemporary artist and Christmas carolers do not have. This is seen in gospel artist and in our Christmas Spirituals. Here’s a list of 8 Christmas spirituals
· Sweet Little Jesus Boy from Harmonizing Four
· Silent Night- from A Gospel Christmas Celebration
· Christmas Hymn- from The Texas Christmas Selection
We need more Christmas Spirituals to remind us what this time of year was truly meant to be about. We have gotten lost and caught up in the hype and are being sold to instead of remembering what truly matters and the true essence of the season, gratitude.
That being said I do STILL love me some Christmas music ESPECIALLY our renditions. Here’s a timeline and list of our Christmas music.
· Jackson 5- Santa Claus is Coming to town, I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus 1970
· Luther Vandross- Mistletoe Jam, My Favorite Things 1995
This list goes on and on and I’m sure I missed some amazing artists as well. This is 40 years of Christmas music and I promise when you vibe out to this list here it will bring back memories and put you in the spirit. I wanted to give you something to compare it to, because now, I want you to hear the new generation of Christmas music. Listening to the list above I’m sure is sentamintal and will have you singing and smiling. This new music is the type to make you dance, rap, and I don’t know maybe even twerk! Check this out…
I’m curious any of you start dancing? This is the new wave of Christmas music and if you put R&B Christmas in Itunes this is what you will get. I’m going to listen to it this week and see what sort of mood it provokes. It’s still the same concepts, similar lyrics, and similar tempo so I don’t think it will take us to the club. We will see I want to hear your feedback as well. Let me know after comparing and listening what you think as well and we can compare notes. I’m going to leave the usual book recommendations, black businesses, and coffee recommendations but will also leave 2 artist that I've been enjoying for you to check out as well and compare. Moving right along into the season folks so be safe and enjoy each of the 25 days…
-- Be Free
Your family at Eclectuals
"Where we mind your mental diet!"
Sounds of Blackness- Soul Holiday & It’s Christmas Time
--The Gospel sound makes me think of Christmas Spirituals
--I personally am a huge fan of 6lack and have enjoyed this mixtape
Book Recommendations
A Soulful Christmas Carol
Blues and Soul Christmas
Support Black Businesses
Coffee Recommendations
A sumatra and Indonesian coffee from the Ketiara collective (women farmers). It's a dark, earthy, deep, full bodied, and complex coffee. It's flavors are creamy, sweet, spice, and butterscotch.
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