Soul music–– say it and it has different meanings to different people.
It originated from within the African American community leading up to and during the Civil Rights Era. So, was the music of such icons as Aretha Franklin, Isaac Hayes, Donny Hathaway, Minnie Ripperton, and many others not only meant as entertainment but also a form of Black resistance? What deeper social meanings can we mine from the expansive library of soul music from the 1960’s onward and how has this genre evolved to still influence artists today? On this episode of Left of Black, host Mark Anthony Neal is joined by Professor Emily J. Lordi of Vanderbilt University as they discuss her latest book, The Meaning of Soul: Black Music and Resilience Since the 1960’s, published by Duke University Press.
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