14 of the most pioneering Black musicians in rock-and-roll history

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Ashley Simone JohnsonJun 20, 2021, 01:23 IST
14 of the most pioneering Black musicians in rock-and-roll history

Tina Turner, Little Richard, and Jimi Hendrix were all inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991, 1986, and 1992, respectively.Gabe Ginsberg / Tim Graham / Walter Iooss Jr. via Getty

  • Various Black musicians invented new sounds and influenced rock and roll throughout history.
  • Jimi Hendrix created unique electric guitar chords and Prince popularized the "Minneapolis sound."
  • Other musicians like Tina Turner inspired big pop-rock stars today, such as P!nk and Miley Cyrus.
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Ruth Brown's talents helped build Atlantic Records, one of America's most important record labels to ever exist.

Ruth Brown's talents helped build Atlantic Records, one of America's most important record labels to ever exist.
Ruth Brown photographed performing circa 1950. Tom Copi/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Brown was one of the first artists signed to Atlantic Records, a label later referred to as "the House That Ruth Built."

In the 1950s, she became the best-selling Black singer of her time with hits like "Teardrops in My Eyes," "Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean," and "This Little Girl's Gone Rockin'."

While Smith was dominating the rhythm-and-blues charts and winning awards like the Bessie Smith Award for best blues singer, she was also pushing the rock genre forward with tunes like "Sweet Baby of Mine."

Her "R&B" music became rock and roll "when the white kids started to dance to it," Brown once said.

She further changed the music business forever when she advocated for musicians' rights, taking on a legal battle against Atlantic Records to procure herself, and other artists, the rights to their royalties.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe made a name for herself as "the Godmother of rock and roll" not only in America, but also overseas.

Sister Rosetta Tharpe made a name for herself as "the Godmother of rock and roll" not only in America, but also overseas.
Sister Rosetta Tharpe's record "Down by the Riverside" topped the charts in the 1940s. Charles Peterson/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

"The Godmother of rock and roll" was a superstar on the electric guitar and traveled the world showing off her unique talents.

In the 1960s, she played in a famous concert outside of Manchester and introduced Brits to electric blues.

She was one of the first Black musicians to start touring with her white counterparts, and in the process, impressed and influenced musicians like Elvis Presley, with whom she worked.

"That's what really attracted Elvis: her pickin'. He liked her singing, but he liked that pickin' first – because it was so different," Gordon Stoker of vocal quartet The Jordanaires said, according to Roling Stone, referencing her guitar skills.

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The unique "Hendrix Chord" was created by electric guitarist Jimi Hendrix.

The unique "Hendrix Chord" was created by electric guitarist Jimi Hendrix.
Jimi Hendrix released his hit song "Purple Haze" on March 17, 1967. Walter Iooss Jr/Getty Images

As a musician, Hendrix did anything but conform to the mainstream. He had a style all of his own – too far out for conventional R&B and too underground for the predominantly white rock scene.

He also redefined the electric guitar's sound with his unique chordal techniques.

The "Hendrix Chord" – which his signature 1967's "Purple Haze" tune is built around – is sophisticated in that it simultaneously uses major and minor chords to produce a gritty yet colorful clangor.

Steely Dan, Pixies, and Muse are just a few of the bands that have used Hendrix's brilliant instrumentation as a guide in their music.

Little Richard declared himself the "queen" of rock and roll.

Little Richard declared himself the "queen" of rock and roll.
Rock 'n' roll legend Little Richard in costume at an empty Wembley Stadium, during rehearsals for a concert in August 1972. Tim Graham / Stringer via Getty

"Elvis may have been the king of rock and roll, but I am the queen," Richard said, according to Reuters.

The musician famously challenged gender norms through his flamboyant stage presence, which has influenced rockers like Elton John and David Bowie.

"If you love anything about the flamboyance of rock and roll, you have Little Richard to thank," The Black Keys' Dan Auerbach told Rolling Stone.

"And where would rock and roll be without flamboyance? He was the first. To be able to be that uninhibited back then, you had to have a lot of not-give-a-f---."

Richard further pushed boundaries by centering his music around his queerness, religion, and drug addiction via hit songs like "Tutti Frutti" and "Long Tall Sally."

"[Richard] founded a tradition of rock dadaists devoted to the art of self-creation," a Rolling Stone critic said in May 2020. "He went with the inspiration of the moment, be it divine or hormonal, and caromed like a shiny, cracked pinball between God, sex, and rock and roll."

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Bo Diddley pioneered an "essential" beat in rock and roll music.

Bo Diddley pioneered an "essential" beat in rock and roll music.
Bo Diddley poses for a portrait with his trademark square Gretsch electric guitar in New York City circa 1957. Michael Ochs Archives / Stringer via Getty

Nicknamed "the Originator," Diddley created the popular eponymous beat – a beat "essential to the rhythm of rock and roll," Grammy Museum director Robert Santelli told The New York Times in 2003.

The "syncopated beat" consisted of "three strokes/rest/two strokes," according to music critic Ben Ratliff.

His self-titled hit song, as well as his 1956 track "Who Do You Love" and 1959 track "Crackin' Up," are shaped around it.

The beat was later heard in Buddy Holly's "Not Fade Away," The Who's "Magic Bus," Bruce Springsteen's "She's the One," U2's "Desire," and more, although Diddley often went uncredited and "'never saw a dime in royalties during his heyday," according to NYT.

He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1987.

Peggy Jones, more popularly known as Lady Bo, was one of the first female guitarists in a mainstream rock band.

Peggy Jones, more popularly known as Lady Bo, was one of the first female guitarists in a mainstream rock band.
Lady Bo performs at Ponderosa Stomp, an annual American music festival, in 2011. Dylan James / YouTube

Dubbed "Mother of rock and roll" by Fabi Reyna of She Shreds, Jones gained stardom as a full-time member of Diddley's band.

She started recording with Diddley in 1957 and went on to become "one of the first (perhaps the first) female rock guitarists in a highly visible rock band," according to History's Greatest – and more specifically, "one of the first ten female blues guitarists," according to Afropunk.

Jones was known for being very experimental and made remarkable technical innovations. She was one of the few to utilize the SynthAxe (a type of guitar-specific system) and Roland's guitar synthesizer (a high-speed generator).

The latter tool was apparently not commonly heard in R&B music and was really only used by the most progressive metal bands.



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Nona Hendryx helped redefine what being a Black artist meant.

Nona Hendryx helped redefine what being a Black artist meant.
Singer Nona Hendryx attends the 2019 New York Pops Gala at Carnegie Hall on April 29, 2019. Mark Sagliocco/Getty

Hendryx was bandmates with Patti Labelle and Sarah Dash in the singing group Labelle.

The trio redefined what a girl group could be and according to Rolling Stone, Hendryx said, "We really treated it like a band, not a girl group. … Three minds, but one mind at the same time."

She was also a founding member of Black Rock Coalition, a non-profit organization based in New York meant to provide whatever resources and creative freedoms to Black artists of all sorts, and promote their work.

Poly Styrene helped pave the way for the feminist punk rock movement.

Poly Styrene helped pave the way for the feminist punk rock movement.
Poly Styrene of punk band X-Ray Spex performs on stage at the Roundhouse, London, England, on January 15, 1978. Gus Stewart / Getty

The unconventional frontwoman of X-Ray Spex was one of the earlier singers to lead the diversification of a white male-dominated punk rock scene.

With her "stirring voice and prescient songwriting" – as David Chiu of Forbes called it – her band's debut single "Oh Bondage Up Yours!" was fated to be a chief anthem of the British punk movement in 1977.

Styrene, along with the female-led band the Slits and the Raincoats, helped create more space for feminist voices and initiatives in the punk genre worldwide, such as the Riot Grrrl movement in America.

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Memphis Minnie wrote one of Led Zeppelin's best-ranked songs, "When the Levee Breaks."

Memphis Minnie wrote one of Led Zeppelin's best-ranked songs, "When the Levee Breaks."
Memphis Minnie was known as "Queen of the Country Blues." Hooks Bros/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Minnie was another musician who became known for her guitar licks and being just as skillful as the next male musician.

She once beat guitarist Big Bill Broonzy in a picking contest judged by guitar legend Muddy Waters.

Minnie could "pick and sing as good as any man I've ever heard; she can make a guitar cry, moan, talk and whistle the blues," Broonzy described the "Queen of the Country Blues."

Her songwriting also continues to make waves in the rock world today. In February, Steven Hyden of Uproxx ranked Led Zeppelin's "When the Levee Breaks" as the English rocker's best song ever – a tune that was originally penned by Minnie.

Tina Turner directly influenced some of the biggest pop/rock stars today, such as Miley Cyrus and P!nk.

Tina Turner directly influenced some of the biggest pop/rock stars today, such as Miley Cyrus and P!nk.
Tina Turner performs in Cologne, Germany in January 2009. Hermann J. Knippertz/AP

From the late 1960s to 70s, Turner's swagger and style were pivotal during a time when pop music was evolving into something bolder and more racially hybrid.

Her "sensuality, gravelly vocals and unstoppable energy were her trademarks and still evoke the kind of euphoria that remains synonymous with rock'n'roll," Daphne A. Brooks of The Guardian said.

The eight-time Grammy winner has directly influenced the likes of Joan Jett, Miley Cyrus, Kelly Clarkson, P!nk, and so many more performers who've refined a blend of pop and rock.

Turner and her ex-husband Ike Turner were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1991.

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Chuck Berry was a part of the freshman class inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Chuck Berry was a part of the freshman class inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Rock and roll guitarist Chuck Berry performs his "duck walk" as he plays his electric hollowbody guitar at the "TAMI Show" on December 29, 1964. Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images

Berry, dubbed the "Father of rock and roll," was "rock's master theorist and conceptual genius,"according to Jon Pareles of The New York Times.

In 1984, he received the Recording Academy's lifetime achievement award, and two years later, he joined the freshman class that was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which included the likes of Elvis Presley, Little Richard, and Buddy Holly.

Berry also created a notably wonky two-string guitar lick, inspired by blues guitarist T-Bone Walker, which was later mimicked by bands like The Rolling Stones.

Other popular rock bands inspired by Berry included The Beach Boys and The Beatles. While the former's "Surfin' U.S.A." was based on Berry's 1958 "Sweet Little Sixteen," the latter reworked his 1956 "Roll Over Beethoven" and 1957 "Rock and Roll Music."

Fats Domino was one of the best songwriters.

Fats Domino was one of the best songwriters.
American pianist and singer-songwriter Fats Domino photographed on March 27, 1967. Clive Limpkin/Daily Express/Hulton Archive/Getty Images

Domino was one of "America's biggest stars," and reportedly had the second-most record sales of his time– next to Presley, according to the BBC.

Between 1955 and 1960, he had produced 11 top 10 hits, and by the end of his career had sold more than 65 million records.

"The Fat Man," his very first single released under Imperial Records, is considered one of his earliest rock pieces.

The music publication has also named the 1950s musician as one of the greatest songwriters of all time.

Some hit songs he'd written, mostly with partner Dave Bartholomew, included "Blueberry Hill" and "Ain't That A Shame," which both went on to be covered by Zeppelin and Cheap Trick, respectively.

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As a musical artist, Prince "could do everything well," according to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

As a musical artist, Prince "could do everything well," according to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Musician Prince seen at the 36th NAACP Image Awards on March 19, 2005 in Los Angeles, California. Prince was honored with the Vanguard Award. Kevin Winter/Getty Images

The "Purple Rain" singer was a rule-breaker when it came to music and did nothing but transcend genres.

Prince spent much of his career fusing funk, R&B, rock, and pop sounds, and introduced the world to the "Minneapolis sound," which the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame defines as "an electric and eclectic funk/R&B/synthrock hybrid that became massively influential in the '80s and beyond," or in other words, a subgenre of funk-rock.

The Hall of Fame also described Prince as a "rare artist that could do everything well" and one "capable of writing and playing mind-melting rock & roll and concocting some of the greatest pop anthems of all time."

Big Joe Turner "made rock and roll history" with his hit song "Shake, Rattle and Roll."

Big Joe Turner "made rock and roll history" with his hit song "Shake, Rattle and Roll."
Big Joe Turner released his hit record "Shake, Rattle and Roll" in 1954. Gilles Petard / Getty

Turner "made rock and roll history" when he released his biggest hit ever "Shake, Rattle and Roll" in 1954 under Atlantic Records, according to NPR.

Bill Haley and Elvis Presley's recordings of the tune became one of the earliest frameworks for the rock and roll sound.

"Rock and roll would have never happened without him," songwriter Doc Pomus said in Rolling Stone magazine.

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