The Influence Of Jazz In The 1920's

The 1920s culminated in an America-altering decade. Along with prosperity, America, especially its urban areas, witnessed the rise of consumerism, prohibition, automobiles, and considerably much more. Among all the great achievements and advancements of the so called “Roaring Twenties,” the music of this era was unprecedented with its brand new grooves and rhythm, which culminated in an all new jazzy style. The soundtrack to the decade’s speakeasies, rebellious flappers, and growing radio industry, jazz supplemented the glitz and glam of this romanticized age, striking a unique chord in American society.

The 1920s became known as the Jazz Age, as nicknamed by the author of this era’s most famous novels, F. Scott Fitzgerald. Much like other

Subsequently, these new artists drove jazz into even more popularity during the 1920s. Musicians, such as Paul Whiteman, King Oliver, and Louis Armstrong, formed dance bands to accompany dancers, while their bands, along with other greats, like Willy Smith, Duke Ellington, and Jelly Roll Morton, recorded with some of the era’s most noticeable and rising record companies such as Gennett Records, Paramount Records, and Okeh Records. From listening to the radio or at various venues, artists would pick up influence from other artists, taking their own twist on the tunes, style, and music to create subgenres of jazz, such as ragtime, as favored by Fletcher Henderson, and blues, as sung by Bessie Smith. These artists, furthermore, created music that spoke to America whether through a joyous, fast-moving ragtime or a sympathetic, slow, and steady blues.

Ultimately, jazz had a profound effect on America during the 1920s. It fostered a change away from strict, rigid thinking and promoted a new unity in America, attracting blacks and whites alike. Playing behind the era’s anti-prohibition crime and its radical changes, not only for women, but as society as a whole, jazz became synonymous with America, with its ideals, uniqueness, and modernism. Undeniably, jazz in the Roaring Twenties was