African-American music

Definitions of African-American music

1. noun

   music created by African-American musicians; early forms were songs that had a melodic line and a strong rhythmic beat with repeated choruses
   synonyms: black music

   types:

   blues

   a type of folksong that originated among Black Americans at the beginning of the 20th century; has a melancholy sound from repeated use of blue notes

   soul

   a secular form of gospel that was a major Black musical genre in the 1960s and 1970s

   hip-hop, rap, rap music

   genre of African-American music of the 1980s and 1990s in which rhyming lyrics are chanted to a musical accompaniment; several forms of rap have emerged

   R and B, rhythm and blues

   a combination of blues and jazz that was developed in the United States by Black musicians; an important precursor of rock 'n' roll

   boogie, boogie-woogie

   an instrumental version of the blues (especially for piano)

   type of:

   genre, music genre, musical genre, musical style

   an expressive style of music