House Music: Beginnings

House Music

House Music is a genre consisting of Euro pop beats and is a blend of soul, funk , jazz, gospel, and Latin salsa. House music was born in 1977 in Chicago's Southside. There are many names to the creation of House Music but one of the biggest influences is known as Frankie Knuckles. 

Frankie is a New York native who came to Chicago and opened up a club called "The Warehouse" in the late 70s. It was there where House music came to life. Frankie gave a new sound to music through House music. He did this by adding 4/4 tempos and adding drum tracks to many Philly classics by the O'Jays and Harold Melvin to name a few. Larry Levan was a friend of Frankie and also played a huge role in the start of House music. He was from Brooklyn and started spinning in a club in New York at the time known as "Paradise Garage". 

David Mancuso was a friend of theirs and started parties known as "The Loft". These parties were made specifically for the black and gay communities. Larry and Frankie attended these parties. It was there where David taught them the ins and outs of House music. Not only the production but also the lighting, music, DJ styles, and sound. 

While many DJs claim they created House music, there were many pioneers to the new genre. It was created by the African-American community and holds a lot of Midwest influence. It was an oppressed community such as African-Americans, Latinos, and gays that influenced the genre. It was a way to bring this community together in the light of music and dance after everything these communities were facing at the time such as discrimination, police brutality, and racism. 

It was effective in the United Kingdom as well for people who weren't satisfied with the materialism of Thatcher's England at the time. In the United States, it was associated with things that white America wouldn't acknowledge. House music aimed to unify people of all backgrounds. Many people at the time could not accept that fact this genre came from a majority of gay clubs. Many corporate music politics tried to prevent the flourish of House music in the 80s, but it didn't stop there. 

Since then House music has grown throughout the nation and the world. There are still many DJs today that spin House music at parties and clubs. Out of House music came many other subgenres such as acid house, deep house, electro house, etc. House music also influenced other genres such as techno and even hip-hop. 

House music brought many communities together in the eighties with it's bumping beats and fast tempos. The genre allowed others to express themselves freely without worrying about judgement and discrimination they might have dealt with else where. It continues to have an influence and will forever have a mark in music history. 




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