28 Astonishing Archaeological Discoveries Made In North America
Saturday, November 30, 2024
Friday, November 29, 2024
Reflections.
As we approach the end of the year, it is certainly right to show reflection of the components of this historic year. This has been a massive year of anniversaries like the 60th year anniversary of the Civil Rights Act in America, the 25th anniversaries of many movies (like the Matrix, the Best Man, etc.), and the 40th year anniversary of the Los Angeles Summer Olympics. Today, we live in a crossroads of world history. There is a battle among democracy and fascism. It is that plainly clear to witness how some people want to deprive people of basic human freedom, and other people want to strengthen democratic human rights in a great way. Times are getting colder, and promoting our health is very important. Even walking 30 minutes a day and drinking more water will start on the path of living long and improving anyone's human health. We are near the quarter century mark of this new 21st century and new millennium too. I remember 2000 like yesterday being 17 years old and seeing Bush Jr. winning the election via the Supreme Court. Now, we will have a new President in January of 2025. We must always defend what is right and sacred in our lives.
It is hypocritical for Trump supporters to claim that Trump is for people of color, when Trump has appointed no one in his cabinet who is black, except for one person. The Trump campaign is not serious about respecting black people, regardless of what Bryon Daniels and Tim Scott have said. Some people are evil. They reject record unemployment, massive economic growth, and lower poverty (created by the Biden/Harris administration), but Trump supporters desire some of the most unqualified, controversial picks in his administration. Marco Rubio is against a Gaza ceasefire, Mike Huckabee said that there is no such thing as a Palestinian, and Mike Johnson is a Trump agent. This is what these MAGA people voted for, and it's disgraceful. Climate change contributes to cancers, increased asthma, and other health issues that real people care about. Reasonable gun regulations have proven to save lives nationwide too. Yet, Trump supporters ignore that reality, because they embrace an alternative reality. The irony is that many of them will benefit from a more progressive administration.
During this time of the year, promoting justice and family is important. That means that a true government is about using resources to benefit the people collectively. It is moral for the government to promote the general welfare of society. The same people who complain about social programs omit that government programs like the Department of Agriculture, the Post Office, public schools, Social Security, the Department of Transporation, WIC, state zoos, the FDA, disability insurance, Amtrak, etc. have helped millions of Americans for generations. Also, many establishment centrists refuse to support independent black media, because of claims of "identity politics" when the Trump campaign used identity politics constantly.
Now, Trump wants Jay Bhattacharya to head the NIH. The NIH stands for the National Institute of Health. The issue with Bhattacharya is that he advocated the herd immunity response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Herd immunity means that people should just let the virus takes its course and human immunity will balance out the illness. This is wrong and illogical because doing that will cause millions more lives to be lost worldwide, and we use science to solve problems (without putting human lives at risk). Therefore, we don't need to embrace MAGA propaganda. We need universal health care for all people, regardless of background. We desire legitimate regulations to fight diseases, improve our environment, and make sure that companies play by the rules. This is the goals that we desire as the cause of freedom is always just.
State-level Democrats refuse to support Trump's mass deportation plan. Trump border chief threatens to arrest people who oppose the Trump agenda. Trump wants a showdown with cities in favor of immigrant rights. Some Trump allies want to restrict resources from cities that endorse the rights of immigrants. This plan is cruel. Democratic Mayor of NYC Eric Adams (who has been accused of financial corruption including solicitation of a contribution by a foreign national) wants to compromise with Trump. Many Republicans forced migrants to go into various cities on purpose to promote an agenda. Eric Adams defended the NYPD after violent arrests at a Palestinian commemoration. Adams has always been a moderate for decades. Freedom should always be unalienable and inborn without restrictions and without compromise.
By Timothy
Thursday, November 28, 2024
Thanksgiving 2024 Part 4.
Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller
We appreciate icons of art prodigiously. During the course of human history, art has made the world glow with the power of creativity, civilization, and unity. Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller was a legendary artist who celebrated Afrocentric themes. She worked in the Harlem Renaissance to be an inspiration for future artists. Warrick was not only a painter and sculptor. During the duration of her life, she was a poet, theater designer, and she expressed the diverse experiences of the black American experience. By the turn of the 20th century, she was the black woman sculptor whose work had spread in Paris, America, and throughout the world. She was born in Philadelphia and passed away in Framingham, Massachusetts to be 90 years old. Warrick was the protegee of Auguste Rodin. As one of the greatest artists of all time, she addressed many social issues like lynching (after Mary Turner was brutally lynched by cowardly racists). She experienced racism and sexism. Yet, Meta Fuller outlined genius to prove to the world that black genius can never be extinguished. Black genius will persist forever in the Universe indeed. The legends of art are appreciated by us. We respect the contributions of Lois Mailou Jones, Sargent Claude Johnson, Jacob Lawrence, Archibald Motley, Romare Bearden, and other people who wanted introspection and a love of truth to persist. The story of Meta Fuller is unsung among many human beings, and we have the right to make sure that her story is presented to the world in a prodigious fashion.
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Her Early Life
Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on June 9, 1877. Her parents were Emma (nee Jones) Warrick, an accomplished wig maker and beautician for upper class white women. William H. Warrick was a successful barber and caterer. Her father owned many barber shops, and her mother owned her own beauty salon. Warrick was, in fact, named after Meta Vaux, the daughter of Senator Richard Vaux, one of her mother's customers. Her maternal grandfather, Henry Jones, was a successful caterer in the city. Both of her parents were considered to have influential positions in African American society. Her family's class status was a special privilege. It gave them many benefits, but even upper middle class black people suffered racism and discrimination back then and today. After an influx of free black people began making a home in Philadelphia, the available jobs were generally physically hard and low-paying. Only a few people could find desirable jobs as ministers, physicians, barbers, teachers, and caterers. During the Reconstruction, due to racism, legalized racial segregation laws, including Jim Crow laws limited the social progress of African Americans into the 20th century. Despite this, Warrick's parents were able to find creative success amongst the "vibrant political, cultural, and economic center" the African American community of Philadelphia had established. Her parents' success inspired Meta Fuller to have access to many cultural and educational opportunities.
Warrick was trained in art, music, dance, and horseback riding. Warrick's art education and art influences started at home. It was nurtured from her childhood by her older sister Blanche, who studied art and visited the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts with her father, who was also interested in sculpture and painting. Her older sister became a beautician like their mother, but she kept clay that Meta was able to use to create art. She was enrolled in 1893 at the Girls' High School in Philadelphia, where she studied art as well as academic courses. Warrick was among the few gifted artists selected from the Philadelphia public schools to study art and design at J. Liberty Tadd's art program at the Philadelphia School of Industrial Art in the early 1890s. Her brother and grandfather entertained and fascinated her with endless horror stories. These influences partly shaped her sculpture, as she eventually developed as an internationally trained artist known as "the sculptor of horrors." Warrick's art career started after one of her high school projects was chosen to be included in the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago. Based upon this work, she won a four-year scholarship to the Pennsylvania Museum and School of Industrial Art (now The University of the Arts College of Art and Design) in 1894. Her gift for sculpture developed.
In an act of independence and nonconformity as an up-and-coming woman artist, Warrick defied traditionally "feminine" themes by sculpting pieces influenced by the gruesome imagery found in the fin de siècle movement of the Symbolist era. At various times, she was a literary sculptor, at others a creator of portrait art - which she studied under Charles Grafly at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Although she said that she could not specialize in African American types, Fuller became one of the most effective chroniclers of the black experience within the United States. In 1898, she received her Pennsylvania Museum and School of Industrial Art diploma and teacher's certificate as well as a scholarship for an additional year of study.
After she graduated in 1899, Warrick traveled to Paris, France, where she studied with Raphael Collin, working on sculpture and anatomy at the Academie Colarossi and drawing at Ecole des Beaux-Arts. Warrick had to deal with racial discrimination at the American Women's Club in Paris, where she was refused lodging although she had made reservations before arriving in the city. African American painter Henry Ossawa Tanner, a family friend, found lodging for her and gave her a community amongst his groups of friends. Warrick's work grew stronger in Paris, where she studied until 1902. Influenced by the conceptual realism of Auguste Rodin, she became so adept at depicting the spirituality of human suffering that the French press named her "the delicate sculptor of horrors." In 1902, she became the protege of Rodin. Of her plaster sketch entitled Man Eating His Heart, Rodin remarked, "My child, you are a sculptor; you have the sense of form in your fingers." Warrick created many works of art that described the African American experience that were revolutionary. They touched on the complexities of nature, religion, identity, and nation. She is considered part of the Harlem Renaissance, a flourishing in New York of African Americans making art of various genres, literature, plays and poetry. The Danforth Museum, which received a $40,000 grant from the Henry Luce Foundation to safeguard Warrick Fuller's work, states that Fuller is "generally considered one of the first African-American female sculptors of importance."
The Art Career Develops More
Meta Fuller met sociologist W.E.B. DuBois, who became a lifelong friend and confidant. He encouraged Warrick to draw from African and African-American themes in her work. She met French sculptor Auguste Rodin, who encouraged her sculpting. Her real mentor was Henry Ossawa Tanner while learning from Raphaël Collin. It was the "masculinity and primitive power" of her sculptures that drew the French crowds to her work and generated her acclaim. The Paris crowd was astonished that a woman could produce works that depicted such "horror, pain, and sorrow." It was a relief for Warrick that her gender wasn't an inhibitor of how the public reacted to her racially themed pieces, as it would be in the United States. By the end of her time in Paris, she was widely known and had had her works exhibited in many galleries. Samuel Bing, patron of Aubrey Beardsley, Mary Cassatt, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, recognized her abilities by sponsoring a one-woman exhibition including Siegfried Bing's Salon de l'Art Nouveau (Maison de l'Art Nouveau). In 1903, just before Warrick returned to the United States, two of her works, The Wretched and The Impenitent Thief, were exhibited at the Paris Salon.
Meta Fuller came back to Philadelphia in 1903. Warrick was shunned by members of the Philadelphia art scene for racist reasons (she was a black woman) and because they felt that her art was "domestic." Yet, Fuller became the first African American woman to receive a U.S. government commission. For this award, she created a series of tableaux depicting African American historical events for the Jamestown Tricentennial Exposition, being held in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1607. The display had 14 dioramas and 130 painted plaster figures showing the scenes of slaves arriving in Virginia in 1619 and the home lives of black human beings. At the time, it was described as the "Historic Tableaux of the Negroes' Progress." Historian W. Fitzhugh Brundage has described Fuller's tableaux as one that suggested "the expansiveness of black abilities, aspirations and experiences, [presenting] a cogent alternative to white representations of history." Warrick's tableaux were given prominent display in the Negro Building at the Jamestown Tercentennial, where they occupied 15,000 square feet. Each scene consisted of painted plaster figures and extensive painted backdrops. The 14 tableaux depicted the following: the landing of the first slaves at Jamestown; slaves at work in a cotton field; a fugitive slave in hiding; a gathering of the first African Methodist Episcopal Church; a slave defending his owner's home during the Civil War; newly freed slaves building their own home; an independent black farmer, builder and contractor; a black businessman and banker; scenes inside a modern African-American home, church and school; and finally, a college commencement. For the record, I don't agree with slaves defending a slave owner's home during the Civil War. For her work on the tableaux, Warrick was awarded a gold medal by the directors of the exposition.
Her work of Mary Turner was her response to the 1918 lynching of a young, pregnant black woman in Lowndes County, Georgia. Fuller's contemporary, Angelina Weld Grimké, wrote the short story "Goldie" based on this murder. Warrick's activism also spanned into feminist work. She participated in the Women's Peace Party and the Equal Suffrage Movement, but abruptly stopped once she realized that black women were discriminated against in the fight for equal voting rights by some white racist suffragists. She often sold pieces to fund voter registration campaigns in the South. Warrick exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia in 1906. She exhibited there again in 1908. In 1910, a fire at a warehouse in Philadelphia, where she kept tools and stored numerous paintings and sculptures, destroyed her belongings; she lost 16 years' worth of work. Among her oeuvre, only a few early works stored elsewhere were preserved. The losses were emotionally devastating for her.
Fuller exhibited at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 1920. She created one of her famous works of Ethiopia (known as Ethiopia Awakening also) for America's Making Exhibition in 1921. The event was meant to show immigrants' contributions to American artistic society and culture. The sculpture of Ethiopia being bronze symbolized a new black identity that was emerging through the Harlem Renaissance. It represented the pride of African Americans in African and black heritage and identity. Ethiopia, drawn from Egyptian sculptural concepts, is an academic sculpture of an African woman emerging from a mummy's wrappings, like a chrysalis from a cocoon, represented her statement on black consciousness globally. Fuller made multiple versions of Ethiopia, including a small maquette with the figure's left-hand projecting from its body (now lost) and two full-size bronze casts, one with the left-hand projecting and a second made incorrectly, with the left-hand flush to the figure's side. In 1922, Fuller showed her sculpture work at the Boston Public Library. Her work was included in an exhibition for the Tanner League, held in the studios of Dunbar High School in Washington, D.C. The federal commissions kept her employed, but she did not receive as much encouragement in the US as she had in Paris. Fuller continued to exhibit her work until her last show (1961) at Howard University (Washington, D.C.) in 1961.
The Latter Years
Meta Fuller wrote poetry too like the poem Departure (relating to the call for freedom for black people). Her poem "Departure" was included in the 1991 collection Now is Your Time! The African American Struggle for Freedom. Warrick Fuller loves to make contributions to the theater. She was a designer, director, and actress. One of her focuses was stage lighting, which was not considered a true art form until the late 1920s; moreover, lighting design was dominated by men. Fuller was able to design for both African American and white theater companies, which was unheard of at the time. In 1918, she joined theater organizations in Boston, Massachusetts. She was known for her paintings of "living pictures" as well as the creation of props, scenery, and masks. The Answer was an African American stage production where Fuller designed costumes while also performing a small role. She became active in the Civic League Players (CLS) in the late 1920s and was the only African-American in the organization. With the CLS, Fuller worked on over thirty shows in all different areas of production and taught workshops. In 1928, she was taking theater classes at Wellesley College and Columbia University that focused on pageantry, lighting, and playwriting. After becoming less active in the CLS, Fuller joined a Black theater company called the Allied Arts Theatre Group (AATG) where she worked as a head designer, director, and board member. She was involved with the AATG until the founder died in 1936. Even with her commitments to being an artist and working in theater, Fuller wrote at least six plays under the pseudonym, Danny Deaver. There is an excerpt of stage directions in her production titled, A Call After Midnight.
SOME OF THE LEADERS OF THE HARLEM RENASSIANCE
Langston Hughes Zora Neale Hurston
Langston Hughes wrote the famous words of "I, too, sing America. I, too, am America." Zora Neale Hurston wrote the following words of "Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place."
In 1907, Warrick married Dr. Solomon Carter Fuller, a prominent physician and psychiatrist, known for his work with Alzheimer's disease. Born in Liberia, Dr. Fuller was one of the first black psychiatrists in the United States. The couple settled on Warren Road in Framingham, Massachusetts where they were one of the first black families to join the community. She continued to create works of art, against the stigma that she should settle down and become a housewife once she and her husband had three children one of which, her son Perry, went on to become a sculptor as well. Prominent African American people visited their house, as did the Prince of Siam. Within the community, Warrick Fuller helped establish and was involved in the lighting of productions put on by the Framingham Dramatic Society. She was an active member of the St. Andrew's Episcopal Church where she directed and costumed their plays and pageants. She loved to create traditional biblical scenes inspired by her religion. She said that art was her divine calling. She loved to create wonderful, great works of art. Warrick Fuller passed away on March 13, 1968, at Cardinal Cushing Hospital in Framingham, Massachusetts.
Her Legacy
Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller's legacy is extensive in being a genius who loves the beautiful gift of art. Her intellect and courage refuted false, stereotypical sexist, and racist notions. She was ahead of her time to create sculptures that reflected the greatness of black people too. In real life, I have painted images before, and I sculpted images when I was in high school. Meta Fuller carried herself with regal dignity. Her work has been shown in America and in many countries of the world too. She was one of the leading black woman sculptors of America in her generation. She studied with experts like Auguste Rodin in Paris, France. The Danforth Museum has a large collection of Fuller's sculptures, including many unfinished works from her home studio. Her work was featured in 1988 in a traveling exhibition at the Crocker Art Museum, along with artists Aaron Douglas, Palmer C. Hayden, and James Van Der Zee. Also, her work was featured in a traveling exhibition called "Three Generations of African American Women Sculptors: A Study in Paradox," in Georgia in 1998. Fuller's work was included in the 2015 exhibition of We Speak: Black Artists in Philadelphia, 1920s-1970s at the Woodmere Art Museum.
Conclusion (for Thanksgiving 2024)
Today on Thanksgiving, is a time of reflection and inspiration. President Biden said that Israel and Lebanon agreed to a proposal to end the conflict with Hezbollah in a ceasefire. The ceasefire was approved by the Israeli security cabinet. There has been more than a year of cross-border conflicts between Israel and Iranian-backed Hezbollah. President Biden said that the deal was created to permanently cease hostilities. This comes after Beirut's southern suburbs have been bombed 20 times in 2 minutes on Tuesday. The Hamas and Israel war exists now with death being over 44,200 people according to the Palestinian health ministry. The ceasefire should exist, but the conflict in Gaza should end too along with the freeing of all hostages. The Biden administration is still negotiating between Israel and Hamas to end the conflict. We all want peace, but it must be a real peace where the Arabic and Jewish people in the Middle East have justice and equality without occupation too.
Trump wants a radical tariff policy to advance a new 25% across-the-board tariff on all goods the U.S. imports from its neighbors (being Canada and Mexico). This comes nearing a possible trade war. Trump believes in a reactionary isolationism that has no place in our modern 21st-century society. If this tariff is made into existence, the price of gas, food, and other supplies may radically go up. This comes after corporate profits have been at an all-time high in recent years. Trump has promoted the nomination of Scott Bessent. Bessent spoke at the Manhattan Institute (which is a conservative think tank) to promote tax cuts, cuts to social programs, and promote the Wall Street agenda status quo. Many of Trump's proposed cabinet members are billionaires whose worth is a combined $313 billion. Elon Musk is supportive of Trump. Musk's father said that Elon's maternal grandparents were in the Nazi party in Canada and moved to South Africa because they supported the apartheid regime.
It is time to expose the far-right racist Laura Loomer, who is a Trump supporter. Loomer is part of Trump's entourage, and Trump allies with Loomer too. She is an Internet personality, a MAGA activist, and calls herself a "pro-white nationalist" and proud "Islamphobe." So, she is a person who is anti-democracy and anti-diversity. Anyone voting for Trump is a supporter of racism and xenophobia, and I don't care who it is. She was born in Tuscon, Arizona. During the day of the 2016 election (on November 8, 2016), Loomer was part of Project Veritas stunt. She went to a polling station dressed in a burqa and asked for a ballot under the name of Huma Abdein, which is blatantly Islamophobic. She has reported for Infowars, Geller Report, and other far right organizations. Loomer is a criminal by she and others jumping the wall around the California Governor's Mansion in Sacramento. They opposed Governor Gavin Newsom's stance on immigration. Loomer promoted the lie that Haitian immigrants were eating other people's household pets in Springfield, Ohio. Loomer made the racist tweet that if Kamala Harris was elected President, then the White House will smell like curry, and White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center. Trump and Loomer are racists plain and simple.
Even Marjorie Taylor Green (a far-right extremist) said that Loomer's remarks about Kamala Harris were racist and appalling. Loomer believes in the lie that the school shootings in February 2018 in Parkland, Florida, and in May 2018 in Santa Fe, Texas were staged. She lied and said that the October 2018 United States mail bombing attempts were a false flag operation created by the Democrats. Loomer is a vicious racist who said that 20,000 Haitians are cannibalistic and promoted the lie that Haitians are eating cats in Springfield, Ohio. She was banned by Twitter and then reinstated by the extremist Elon Musk. In 2019, after the white racist terrorist attack that killed 51 people at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, Loomer wrote that she doesn't care about Christchurch. Loomer is evil. Loomer spoke at the annual conference of white racist publication of American Renaissance (who believes in the myths that white people have intellectual superiority, and that ancient Egypt included originally white European people). She opposes birthright citizenship. She disrespected Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, Kamala Harris, Fani Willis, and Letitia James in racist terms. So, Loomer is a fraud, and Trump supports her. Anyone supporting Loomer and Trump is evil and a sellout to the core.
There has been slander against Haitian people in Springfield, Ohio eating cats. This is promoted by far-right people and racists who don't believe in the principle of treating your neighbor as yourself. Not only have there been bomb threats in Springfield, Ohio over this lie, but many Haitian Americans fear more hate crimes, attacks, and even death. This racism and xenophobia are not new among Republicans. Laura Ingraham said that Haitian refugees are part of a Democratic plot to cancel out so-called native-born Americans. Trump and his supporters of demonizing black immigrants and other immigrants of color are part of a key playbook to cause fear and division in society. The mayor of Springfield and the Republican Governor of Ohio debunk the eating local pets lie. This lie promotes the stereotype that we black people are dysfunctional people. Trump and J.D. Vance believe in this racist lie too. Xenophobia was shown by Tariq Nasheed, and Yvette Carnell (who is jealous of the black scholar Jessica Aiwuyor who wrote literature in favor of black liberation globally. Yvette Carnell lied and said that Jessica has no credentials when she has three degrees, including two master's degrees and 20 years of experience), and others should be condemned as well. Therefore, as a black American, I will defend the human rights of Haitian people in America and throughout the world. We shall never give up and prevail in the end.
By Timothy
Thanksgiving 2024 Part 3.
2024 Presidential Election: The Finale
There are always moments in our history that will change our lives. The 2024 Presidential election has changed our lives in many ways. This is the finale of the 2024 American Presidential election after long months of debates, tragedies, and events that are part of world history. Nothing will be the same again. In four years, President Biden has left the Presidential race, Trump experienced 2 assassination attempts, Kamala Harris raised record money involving her Presidential campaign, and we see a move to fight for our democracy. Our ancestors shed blood for our freedom. We stand on the shoulder of giants who stood up against slave traders, against Confederate traitors, against Nazis, and against Jim Crow leaders. We are against discrimination and oppression of any sort for we believe wholeheartedly in the august principle of the Golden Rule. The Golden Rule states that you love your neighbor as yourself. At the end of the 2024 election, Donald Trump and J.D. Vance won their campaign. It was shocking to many human beings, but it wasn't to me. The reason is that America is America. A lot of righteous, inspirational people live in America, but many underestimated the MAGA cult. The MAGA cult is the greatest cult in all of human history brainwashing millions of people to support a male who glorifies disrespect of military veterans, who mocked disabled human beings, and who is a habitual liar. Therefore, the Democrats have to do soul-searching, and the GOP once again went into more depths of disgrace. I have no apologies for my core convictions, and I will continue to stand on business in dealing with my precepts. Still, I have hope. The reason is that our lives are a product of a miracle. We could be nonexistent or passed away now, but we are here with the opportunity to do what is right. History teaches us that good is superior to evil, and if we want to see a better tomorrow, then we have to earnestly fight for it without permanent pessimism. I love truth and joy in seeing a better tomorrow for America.
The Recap of the Events of the Election Race
The 2024 Presidential election started after President Biden won the election in November 2020. The Trump team sued states in trying to steal the election, but they failed by the Supreme Court, which prevented Trump from stealing the 2020 election. Trump agitated a mob in the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021, in trying to oppose Congress certifying the rightful victory for Biden. This mob beat police officers, stole property, waved Neo-Nazi and neo-Confederate flags, and more National Guard troops had to come into the place to stop the mob. Mike Pence was almost killed by the insurrectionists. Trump was impeached twice by early 2021, and President Biden was inaugurated as the 46th President of the United States on January 20, 2021. Kamala Harris was inaugurated as Vice President on the same day too being the first black and Indian American President in American history. At first, President Biden wanted to run for office again in 2024. By 2022, many Presidential candidates rise up. That year saw new decisions by the Supreme Court too like Roe being abolished. The RNC decided that Milwaukee would be the site of the 2024 Republican National Convention. The FBI investigated Mar-a-Lago involving a criminal investigation of Donald Trump. The 2022 midterm election allowed the Democrats to win the U.S. Senate and the House to gain slight control of the United States House of Representatives. By early 2023, the Democratic National Committee move the primary calendar up from other dates. By February 2023, Niki Haley ran for President on the Republican ticket. Later, Vivek Ramaswamy ran for President too. By March 30, 2023, Trump was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury for his hush money scandal with Stormy Daniels. The neoliberal, centrist No Labels organization explored options to promote a unity ticket in the presidential election, but they failed thankfully. Tim Scott ran for President too as a Republican from South Carolina. He is a Senator. Robert Kennedy Jr. once ran for President on April 19, 2023, too. 2023 saw the Presidential race grow in intensity. By October 2023, Cornell West ran for President as an Independent. The October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israeli changed the 2024 Presidential race forever. Many Muslim Americans want Biden to drop out of the race over his handling of the Israel/Hamas war. This is part of the #Abandon Biden movement. By early 2023, Trump won the primaries in the Republican races. Biden won the Democratic primaries too. After Super Tuesday on March 4, 2024, Trump and Biden won their primary votes. Nikki Haley endorsed Trump. By the early Summer of 2024, Biden is encouraged by members of his own party to leave the race before his age and performance in the first Presidential debate.
The July 1, 2024, Supreme Court decision allowed Trump to absolute immunity for acts he committed as President and no immunity for unofficial acts. It was a 6-3 decision being one of the worst decisions of the Supreme Court. By this time, Trump is a convicted felon and found liable for sexually abusing a woman. Raul Grjalva and Seth Moulton want Biden to withdraw from the race. The Democratic elites want Biden gone. The Republican National Convention took place in July of 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. J.D. Vance is the new Vice-Presidential GOP candidate. Biden tested positive for COVID-19 by July 17, 2024. By July 21, 2024, President Joe Biden withdrew from the race supporting Vice President Kamala Harris to have the Democratic candidacy. Vice President Kamala Harris announced her candidacy for President. This comes after the first assassination attempt against Donald Trump in Pennsylvania. Kamala Harris had immediate support and picked Governor of Minnesota Tim Walz as his vice-presidential running mate. Many Uncommitted delegates from 8 states support Palestinians not Harris. The August 2024 Democratic National Convention took place in Chicago, Illinois with power and inspiration. By this time, the race between Harris and Trump remains close, especially in battleground states. People have debated the role of men, including black men in their views of Kamala Harris. Kamala Harris thoroughly defeated Donald Trump in the 2nd Presidential debate on September 10, 2024. By September 2024, Trump has a 2nd assassination attempt. Early voting started by September. Walz defeated Vance on October 1, 2024, by default as Vance told lies in a slick fashion. After that, Hurricane Helene and Milton damaged the Southeast, Trump lied about Haitian immigrants, and Trump increased his bigoted rhetoric against immigrants. Trump wants concentration camps to deport all undocumented workers. Trump also slandered Detroit too.
The end of the 2024 Presidential campaign dealt with evidence of Vice President Kamala Harris and Donald Trump touring battleground states in the last few weeks before November 5, 2024. Kamala Harris was in Atlanta, Georgia first to make her case to the American people that she has the best policies to deal with the challenges of America (involving loss of rights, inflation, immigration, housing, health care, and other important issues). Kamala Harris said that Donald Trump was unhinged, angrier, and a threat to democracy. Celebrities like Bruce Springsteen and Tyler Perry gave speeches in favor of Kamala Harris. It is cowardly that the Washington Post and the LA Times declined to support a Presidential candidate because this election is the most important election in American history. Jeff Bezos used his influence to cause the Washington Post to not endorse a candidate. Kamala Harris spoke in Houston, Texas to promote her version of America and how Trump desire to terminate the U.S. Constitution doesn't make him worthy to speak behind a Presidential seal. Beyonce and Kelly Rowland including Tina Knowles spoke in favor of Kamala Harris in the rally. She made comments in Michigan to a large crowd and in Philadelphia on October 27, 2024, to advocate for tax credits for parents with children, for loving your neighbor, and for turning a chapter in American history. Trump has campaigned in Arizona, Nevada, and Pennsylvania. Military leader John Kelly has called Trump a fascist including other people. Trump is a clear and present danger to the world, because he wants a Muslim ban, lied and called the Central Park Five guilty, disrespected military veterans and the military in general, wants more tax breaks for the super wealthy, desires to shut down media organizations like CBS if they don't comply to his agenda (when the media should be an independent body as cited in the American Constitution at the Bill of Rights), and seeks the police to have immunity (even if some officers are guilty of police brutality). Sellouts who support Trump like Amber Rose, Trick Trick, Judge Joe Brown, Lord Jamar, and others should be ashamed of themselves. Rose allying with Trump outlines her anti-black colors once again. Some good news is that early voting in Georgia has surpassed 50 percent of the 2020 ballots cast. We have a record of early voting turnout in America involving voting.
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The October 27, 2024, Madison Square Garden rally will go down in history as a bigoted, racist, sexist, and xenophobic rally. That rally shows what the MAGA movement is all about and what Trump relates to division, hypocrisy, and hate. Trump's closing argument has been disgraceful. Trump said that America is an occupied country which is a lie. Also, many speakers at the rally spoke profanity and racist remarks in front of kids and adults in the crowd. Anyone who is a Trump supporter is totally wrong, and I don't care who it is. You have former Congressional candidate David Rem calling Kamala Harris the antichrist and the devil. You have others bashing Hillary Clinton and undocumented human beings. Tony Hinchiffe called Puerto Rico a floating island of "garbage." He compared black people to just eating watermelons. This is the evil that Trump and his supporters promote. That is why artist Bad Bunny showed support for Harris after the comedian made offensive comments about Puerto Rico. Vice President Kamala Harris never said that language and has talked to Black and Latino voters in Philadelphia on the same day the Trump Klan hate rally existed at MSG. Another disgraceful thing is that many CEOs are supporting Trump despite his narcissism, his extremism, and his lies.
Election Day 2024
Tuesday, November 5, 2024, was a disgraceful day in American history. It is not shocking to me, because we have been here before (when Reagan and Bush Jr. were elected for two terms) experiencing disappointment in certain segments of Americans who care more for ego, flash, division, political divisiveness, the agenda of white racism, and bigotry than the betterment of America collectively. The history of America is filled with racism (as most of the signers of the Declaration of Independence owned slaves), genocide, bigotry in general, and the activism of progressive people to resist oppression in America too. Tons of Trump supporters advocate massive budget cuts hurting Americans, but they don't care. Trump is a person who was found legally liable of sexually abusing a woman, disrespected many women, slandered Vice President Kamala Harris, and glorified the Nazis (according to one General), but Trump voters don't care. Many of them lied or hide their real views (in polls and in public), so people won't know that they are aligned with Trumpism in public (under the guise of calling themselves "undecided"). Therefore, we realize that Donald Trump has been elected President according to the Electoral College. Trump has 312 Electoral votes and Kamala Harris has 226 Electoral votes. Yet, we will not surrender our fight for justice. Trump won most of the popular vote as he has over 74 million votes and Kamala Harris has over 70 million votes.
The following is a true story. Before the election was over, something in my spirit mentioned the phrase, John Henry (back in 2020 in real life I had a dream of people celebrating proving that Biden would win the election in 2020). I didn't know what that phrase John Henry meant until that day. That meant that Kamala Harris ran the best that she could, but she ran out of steam. That thought was John Henry. John Henry is a fictional story about a black man dying after facing against a machine. That thought or vision in my mind (before the election was over) means that Kamala Harris was the black woman version of John Henry. Kamala Harris ran as hard as she could, but the Wall Street interests, and the Trump movement defeated her campaign in the end. Trump is Wall Street as tons of billionaire Wall Street acolytes have funded his campaign from start to finish. It is not Kamala Harris' fault that she lost the election. She did the best that she could. She gave eloquent speeches, refuted Trump in a debate, and gave details about her policy positions. My state of Virginia voted for Kamala Harris which I am thankful for. My state of Virginia is the most progressive state of the South which will continue to shine bright. Virginia is for Lovers indeed. Also, Trump is no victim. He was legally charged with many felonies and convicted of many felonies. He was born into privilege (being descendants of German immigrants ironically enough) who lies habitually, and the MAGA movement is the largest cult in American history. Many Democrats must do self-searching to appeal to a wide spectrum of Americans (involving many issues and trends in society), but this election proves that America is not a liberal country or even a center-left country.
This country of America is very conservative filled with theocrats, misogynists (found in the incel and red pill cultures), and racists plus xenophobes who hate democratic freedoms, who hate black people, and who hate diversity. I know that many people can't ascertain that truth, but to get to the Promised Land for real, we must be honest with reality. This is America now. Many of Trump supporters believe in the Apple pie myth that only white men are superior to all other people, and Trump is a near Messiah who can solve problems. This lie has been embraced not only by many white men (and many white women), but many sellouts of color who embrace MAGA instead of human liberation. For the record, Trump wants mass deportations of many legal immigrants as he hates birthright citizenship (which is found in the 14th Amendment). I also want to acknowledge the people of every color who oppose the views of Donald Trump. Their work shouldn't be omitted. The political results of Florida and Texas should shock no one. Many historical firsts have been made in Congress, but the Senate belongs to the Republicans.
This is a new era of American history with fascism could be on the horizon. The majority of black people voted for Harris, the majority of white people voted for Trump, the majority of young people increasingly voted for Trump, most Latina women voted for Harris, and most Latino men voted for Trump. The economy was a motivating factor for voting along with democracy and immigration. The problem was that the House blocked any progressive legislation to deal with these important issues, and the Senate had an issue with massive Republican opposition too. Authoritarian policies from Trump will exist, and this fascism must be opposed. Trump said that he wants to heal the nation, but he refuses to apologize for his nefarious views. He is an evil person.
The Image above showed the 2024 Presidential election results via the Electoral College.
A New Time
A new era of time is here with a new challenge and a future new President coming about by 2025. In the quarter-century mark and nearly 250 years of American history, we have seen massive changes. The MAGA cult is very brutal. Likewise, many moderates and conservatives like Joe Scarborough are coming out to blame progressives for the Kamala Harris loss. They are lying for many reasons. The first reason is that the vast majority of black men and black women voted for Kamala Harris (despite what Joe Scarborough said about black men. Joe has once again shown his conservative ways with his mocking and lying about blaming progressive activists for Trump winning the 2024 election). Also, millions of Americans stayed home, and voter apathy contributed to the Trump victory.
Not to mention that Kamala Harris has come to the center on many issues from immigration to fracking (which is not what many progressives supported), but that wasn't enough because it wasn't her ideology (as millions of Americans refused to vote for a black and South Asian woman to be President) that caused the defeat. It was Kamala's identity and the influence of the Trump movement brainwashing millions of Americans to cause a convicted felon and instigator of the January 6th, 2021, insurrection against the U.S. Capitol to be the new President in the future. Republicans readily obstruct progress, and many Democrats stayed home believing that their vote didn't matter after Republicans obstructed policies. have you noticed that the Republicans in years haven't passed legitimate legislation in Congress. The big lie is that Kamala Harris never had detailed policy positions. She had tons of positions on helping working-class people, on investing in businesses, on addressing student loan debt, and on other issues from the environment to human rights (when mainstream economists said that Harris's economic views would improve the economy better than Trump's economic plans). The other lie is that Harris is obsessed with identity politics when Kamala Harris made it clear to downplay her identity in speeches and interviews. She never talked about her race and gender in campaign rallies constantly. This refutes the notion that identity politics caused her defeat. In fact, Donald Trump ran an explicit identity politics campaign talking about his "beautiful white skin," questioning Kamala Harris' black heritage and dehumanizing minority groups in his campaign. Trump supported far-right white grievance. Kamala Harris did her job. Also, Trump used identity politics constantly by trying to appeal to young white men constantly in his campaign. Many people criticize "identity politics" as coded language as an excuse for them to ignore the real issues of racism, sexism, and bigotry in general in America plus the world. Now, it's time for the American people to do our jobs to resist fascism in our country.
Vice President Kamala Harris gave her concession speech on this somber day. Most Americans voted for a narcissist in a disgraceful fashion. Yet, Kamala Harris spoke about being engaged in the fight for freedom and respecting the dignity of all people. In the end, we will win. Kamala Harris wants people to never give up on trying to make the world a better place. She gave a speech at Howard University. She spoke to the youth at Howard University and the audience of the world to never despair and to roll up our sleeves to fight for our rights as human beings. Trump has made it clear his love of the world's dictators and autocrats from Putin to Orban. Trump said that he may not honor America's alliances.
President Joe Biden wants people to continue with the work in promoting justice and a defeat is not an excuse to give up. Biden wants a peaceful and orderly transition. The lie is that we must unconditionally support what the majority of Americans support at every instance. For example, during the 19th century, most Americans didn't want to abolish slavery. I oppose slavery. During the 20th century, the majority of Americans once viewed the Civil Rights Movement as going too far. I disagree with that perspective. Trump promotes himself as a working-class promoter, but lobbyists support him, Susie Wiles has her lobbying firms, and she is promoted as Chief of Staff. Billionaires and Wall Street interests fund the Trump campaign explicitly. The richest person on Earth, Elon Musk, supported Trump politically and financially. Sellouts like RFK Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, and other people agree with Trump when Trump wants to deport over 11 million undocumented human beings, glorify Hitler, wants to have a massive tariff plan, and seek to punish his political opponents. Some positive news is that 2 new black women Senators are in office. Also, voters in many states approved minimum wage increased, paid sick leave programs, and rejected school privatization. We should know that Trump got more votes for many reasons. Many people didn't vote, because, in the 2020 election, the Biden/Harris campaign talked about voting rights and living wages more overtly. There has been not the massive increase of the federal minimum wage either. Progressive policies are still popular as proven by the passage of many state ballot initiatives.
There are many people who are legitimately upset that Trump won the 2024 election. Yet, some people, who oppose Trump, have turned into the wrong path to desire mass deportations of Latinos and allow Israel to turn Gaza into a parking lot. We know that the Israeli war crimes in Gaza and other places in the Middle East have no justification (Hamas harming innocent people on October 7th have no justification either) and Trump is a big supporter of the far-right Netanyahu regime. We should accept the Presidential 2024 election results but not respect the result. I accept it, but I don't respect it. We should criticize many of the pro-Trump sellouts of color who voted for Trump. The people of color who voted for Trump are wrong, traitors to their people, and hugely misguided. Yet, our dissent with them must be filled with true facts, not xenophobia, racism, or Islamophobia. We should oppose the views of Trump supporters without embracing the bigotry of Arabic people, Muslims, Latino people, etc. at the same time. We must fight for economic justice, defend our democracy, protect our environment, and reject cynicism. Trump advocating mass deportations will definitely split families and cause economic damage to America.
Also, many Trump supporters have attacked black people and other minority communities. There are signs in Texas University saying women are property, promoting slavery, and glorifying evil. There are recent text messages sent to black Americans (sending racist text messages). According to TVOne, Georgia and North Carolina police are investigating possible Klan threats to attack black people from now through inauguration. Pelosi is wrong to say that there should be an open primary when time was very limited. Trump supporters voted for Trump, who bragged about promoting evil, and we have to accept that America is filled with racist, sexist, nativist, and xenophobic thought (beyond just economic or class issues) that brainwashed many voters to support a narcissistic fascist. Anti-blackness and sellout people of color desiring proximity to white racist power contributed heavily to why Kamala Harris lost the election too. I believe in economic justice, but you have to fight for both economic, gender, racial, environmental justice at the same time. The truth is that inflation is down to 2.1 percent, unemployment is 4 percent, GDP is up by 3%, we have a massive growth of jobs (including manufacturing jobs). Therefore, many people are suffering today, but the economy of today is much better four years ago proven by the metrics.
Likewise, we must realize that economic inequality persists today, and the suffering of many people economically can't be minimized. The super-wealthy are getting richer and many Americans voted for Trump wrongly for frustration over the economy. Democrats, if they want to win, would increase their words on giving voice to the anger and show how record inequality has harmed the system and advocate to limit the political power of big corporations and the super-rich. Republicans have promoted cut taxes on the wealthy, and many neoliberal centrist Democrats (not all Democrats) have supported NAFTA, deregulated finance, and empowered Wall Street too. Both major parties bailed out Wall Street as well. President Joe Biden, to his credit, did many good things economically like enforcing antitrust laws, investing in manufacturing jobs, grown infrastructure, invested in semiconductors, gave student loan debt relief to millions of Americans, and reduced childhood poverty in half. There is a myth that this 2024 election was a political realignment of Democrats when there is about a one percent difference among the popular vote between Harris and Trump.
Continued Fight for Justice
The continued fight for justice continues. It is never our responsibility to force people against their will to embrace the truth. People have to embrace the truth voluntarily. We, who are black people, are not the world's mules. Yet, we have free speech and the human right to express our ideals in public in a peaceful fashion. A loss in a battle doesn't mean that we give up, so we should never give up. That is the lesson of the results of the 2024 Presidential Election. Project 2025 is a real threat to our freedom. Donald Trump denies being part of it, but many of his high-level advisors are part of that document. Project 2025 wants to lessen workplace safety and nondiscrimination laws, eliminate public sector unions, defund the Department of Education (when low-income families need free lunch and other investments), and gut child labor protections. We should never move to the far right in trying to gain votes. Many people would vote against any progressive or Democrat regardless of policy. We should maintain our core convictions like the defense of democracy, advance the rights of black people, equality, voting rights, economic rights, the rights of women, and the rights of immigrants. Vice President Kamala Harris lost the election for many reasons (from grassroots organizing issues, racism, sexism, economic frustration, and the reality that most American voters desire a far-right, pro-Trump nation as proven by the polls). We, who oppose Trump's agenda, must be firm to have a clear economic populist agenda of paid family leave, Medicare for all, stronger higher education, stronger unions, fair taxes on the super wealthy, and housing credits. Folks need to realize that pay has been bad for decades because of large corporations and the super-rich rigging the market (not liberals, immigrants, black people, other people of color, women, etc.). If the Democrats want to be viable, they must end their allyship with corporate centrists (who love capitalism more than true human economic justice. Capitalism is not God) and be an anti-establishment party for real. In the end, we have to maintain joy and hope plus faith in the future. You must find that space in life where you embrace true light to go forward and help humanity with sincere motivations.
The History of Country Music Part 3 (The 1980's and the 1990's)
By the 1980's and the 1990's, country music changed to be even more diverse. Western, rock, and pop elements came into country music. There has been a renaissance of new fans of country music by the 1980's and the 1990's. We know about Willie Nelson and Juice Newton. We know about Kenny Rogers with a duet with Dolly Parton in the song Islands in the Stream. There has been the growth of country rock too that existed since the 1960's. Later, by 1980, there was the style of neo-country disco music. This music was popularized in the film Urban Cowboy. There was an increase of pop country crossover artists like Bill Medley (of the Righteous Brothers), England Seals, Tom Jones, and Merrill Osmond. Marie Osmond became a country star too. There were the truck-driving country and the neo-traditionalist movement. By the 1990's, country music expanded into FM radio more. Back in the day, country music was on AM for the most part. One of the most popular country music artists of the 1990's was Garth Brooks. He had one of the most successful careers in country music. We saw a new school group of country music stars with country and a vibe appearing to younger people like Clint Black, John Michael Montgomery, Cleve Francis, Tracy Lawrence, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, Brooks and Dunn, and other people. There has been an increase of women country musicians in the 1980's and the 1990's. Their names are Reba McEntire, Patty Loveless, Faith Hill, Martina McBride, Pam Tills, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Lorrie Morgan, Shania Twain, and other women who released platinum-selling albums. By the end of the 1990s, the Chicks had their 1998 debut album Wide Open Spaces being 12 times platinum, and their 1999 album Fly went 10 times platinum. So, this era saw country music reach new heights from Hootie and the Blowfish to LeAnn Rimes. From line dancing to alternative country, country music reached into another level of cultural prominence. Country music is global too being expressed by artists in Australia, Canada, Japan, Mexico (and the rest of Latin America), Ireland, the UK, the Middle East, etc.
The 1980's
By the 1980s, country music started to have a shift. More pop influences came into country music. Pop music is a different style that has been beloved and hated by many people in the world. Willie Nelson and Juice Newton each had two songs in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100 in the early eighties: Nelson charted "Always on My Mind" (#5, 1982) and "To All the Girls I've Loved Before" (#5, 1984, a duet with Julio Iglesias), and Newton achieved success with "Queen of Hearts" (#2, 1981) and "Angel of the Morning" (#4, 1981). Four country songs topped the Billboard Hot 100 in the 1980s: "Lady" by Kenny Rogers, from the late fall of 1980; "9 to 5" by Dolly Parton, "I Love a Rainy Night" by Eddie Rabbitt (these two back-to-back at the top in early 1981); and "Islands in the Stream", a duet by Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers in 1983, a pop-country crossover hit written by Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb of the Bee Gees. Newton's "Queen of Hearts" almost reached No. 1, but was kept out of the spot by the pop ballad juggernaut "Endless Love" by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie. The move of country music toward neotraditional styles led to a marked decline in country/pop crossovers in the late 1980s, and only one song in that period—Roy Orbison's "You Got It", from 1989—made the top 10 of both the Billboard Hot Country Singles" and Hot 100 charts, due largely to a revival of interest in Orbison after his sudden death.
By the 1980s, the world has changed. Fashion and culture became more eclectic. There was a massive conservative movement in the West from Reagan in America to Thacher in the UK. The only song with substantial country airplay to reach number one on the pop charts in the late 1980s was "At This Moment" by Billy Vera and the Beaters, an R&B song with slide guitar embellishment that appeared at number 42 on the country charts from minor crossover airplay. The record-setting, multi-platinum group Alabama was named Artist of the Decade for the 1980s by the Academy of Country Music. Country rock grew, and it mixed rock music and country. It has been around since the 1960s. Bob Dylan and John Welsey Harding had this style along with Gene Clark and The Flying Burrito Brothers. Gram Parsons' work in the early 1970s was acclaimed as one of the pioneers of country rock. This genre would be expressed by Hank Williams Jr., Hank Williams III, Gary Allan, Shania Twain, Brooks & Dunn, Faith Hill, Garth Brooks, Dwight Yoakam, Steve Earle, Dolly Parton, Rosanne Cash and Linda Ronstadt moved country further towards rock influence. The 1980 film Urban Cowboy popularized neocountry disco music. This has been shown by many pop starts like Bill Medley (of the Righteous Brothers), "England Dan" Seals (of England Dan and John Ford Coley), Tom Jones, and Merrill Osmond (both alone and with some of his brothers; his younger sister Marie Osmond was already an established country star) all recorded significant country hits in the early 1980s. Sales in record stores rocketed to $250 million in 1981; by 1984, 900 radio stations began programming country or neocountry pop full-time. As with most sudden trends, however, by 1984 sales had dropped below 1979 figures.
There is the truck driving country music. It is a fusion of honky-tonk, country rock, and the Bakersfield sound. Its lyrics discuss the truck driver's lifestyle as many truck driver drives for days listening to the radio constantly. It has the tempo of country and the emotion of honky-tonk. Many artists in the genre were Dave Dudley, Red Sovine, Dick Curless, Red Simpson, Del Reeves, the Willis Brothers, and Jerry Reed, with C. W. McCall and Cledus Maggard (pseudonyms of Bill Fries and Jay Huguely, respectively) being more humorous entries in the subgenre. Dudley is known as the father of the truck driving country. By the mid 1980's, a new generation of country music artists didn't want the more polished country pop sound. They wanted a back-to-basics neotraditionalist country music style. Many of the artists during the latter half of the 1980s drew on traditional honky-tonk, bluegrass, folk, and western swing. Artists who typified this sound included Travis Tritt, Reba McEntire, George Strait, Keith Whitley, Alan Jackson, John Anderson, Patty Loveless, Kathy Mattea, Randy Travis, Dwight Yoakam, Clint Black, Ricky Skaggs, and the Judds. Many of these artists carried over into the 1990's. George Strait is a pioneer of the neotraditionalist movement and has been called the "King of Country." He is one of the bestselling musicians of all time.
The 1990's
The fifth generation of country music was in the 1990s. The 1990s was the decade when most of my childhood existed when I had some of the greatest joys in my life. The 1990s was the start of the post-Cold War era filled with celebrity culture growing, the ascendance of black celebrities to the next level, the modernization of the Internet, and the increase of international globalization. Country music was aided by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Docket 80–90, which led to a significant expansion of FM radio in the 1980s by adding numerous higher-fidelity FM signals to rural and suburban areas. At this point, country music was mainly heard on rural AM radio stations; the expansion of FM was particularly helpful to country music, which migrated to FM from the AM band as AM became overcome by talk radio (the country music stations that stayed on AM developed the classic country format for the AM audience). Country music spread into more by the 1990s. In 1990, Billboard, which had published a country music chart since the 1940s, changed the methodology it used to compile the chart: singles sales were removed from the methodology, and only airplay on country radio determined a song's place on the chart.
By the 1990s, Garth Brooks helped to make country music grow into the next level as a permanent worldwide phenomenon. Garth Brooks was like a rock star with sold-out concerts, tons of fans, and music anthems. He became one of the most successful artists in country music with pop elements too. The RIAA has certified his recordings at a combined (128× platinum), denoting roughly 113 million U.S. shipments. Other artists who experienced success during this time included Clint Black, John Michael Montgomery, Tracy Lawrence, Tim McGraw, Kenny Chesney, Travis Tritt, Alan Jackson, and the newly formed duo of Brooks & Dunn. George Strait, whose career began in the 1980s, also continued to have widespread success in this decade and beyond. Toby Keith began his career as a more pop-oriented country singer in the 1990s, evolving into an outlaw persona in the early 2000s with Pull My Chain and its follow-up, Unleashed.
The 1990s saw more women carry the torch of country music too. Even where I am from, during the 1990s, most people in America heard of Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, and LeAnn Rhimes. LeAnn Rhimes was on the show Moesha in 1999 to promote country music as the actress Countess Vaughn is a fan of country music in real life. Other women artists spreading their music during the decade of the 1990s are Patty Loveless, Faith Hill, Martina McBride, Deana Carter, Mindy McCready, Pam Tillis, Lorrie Morgan, Shania Twain, and Mary Chapin Carpenter. All of these human beings had released platinum-selling albums in the 1990s. Shania Twain's whole name is Eilleen Regina Twain. She was born on August 28, 1965, at Windsor, Ontario, Canada. She loved to mix country music and pop to the point that she is known as the Queen of Country Pop. She sang at a young age and worked with Mercury Nashville Records by the early 1990s. Her debut self-titled debut studio album came about in 1993. The Woman in Me in 1995 was the album that gave her widespread success. It sold 20 million copies worldwide with singles like Any Man of Mine and earned her Grammy Award. Come On Over was released in 1997, being a bestselling album with songs like You're Still the One, From This Moment One, That Doesn't Impress Me Much, and Man! I Feel Like a Woman! Twain was inducted into the Canada's Walk of Fame and the Hollywood Walk Fame plus the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. Shania Twain was a predecessor of Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor, Britney Spears, and Haim. She defined fashion and culture in modern day culture music.
The Chicks became one of the most popular country bands of the 1990s and the early 2000s. Their 1998 debut album Wide Open Spaces went on to become certified 12× platinum while their 1999 album Fly went on to become 10× platinum. By the 21st century, The Chicks became more overt in their progressive politics. Country music is not based on geography, birthplace, race, color, sex, nationality, or background. It's based on music period. The only thing that matters is that you make inspiring, great music for the masses of the people. After collaborating with producer and later husband Robert John "Mutt" Lange, she rose to fame with her second studio album, The Woman in Me (1995), which brought her widespread success. It sold over 20 million copies worldwide, spawned eight singles, including "Any Man of Mine" and earned her a Grammy Award. Twain's third studio album, Come On Over (1997), is recognized by Guinness World Records as the biggest-selling studio album by a woman solo artist. It also became the best-selling country album, best-selling album by a Canadian, and one of the world's best-selling albums of all time, selling over 40 million copies worldwide. Come On Over produced twelve singles, including "You're Still the One", "From This Moment On", "That Don't Impress Me Much" and "Man! I Feel Like a Woman!" and earned her four Grammy Awards. In the early-mid-1990s, country western music was influenced by the popularity of line dancing.
The band Hootie and the Blowfish was very popular in the 1990s and beyond too. The band met in Columbia, South Carolina, and formed in 1986. It was started by Darius Rucker and Mark Bryan who were freshmen at the University of South Carolina. Bryan was a guitar player and Rucker was the vocalist. Their mainstream debut album was Cracked Rear View (1994). Released in July 1994, the album's popularity grew after its release, becoming the best-selling album of 1995, and was one of the fastest-selling debut albums of all time. The album was certified platinum in the United States in January 1995, and incrementally rose to 12× platinum by January 1996, and 16× platinum by March 1999. In May 2019, the certification was updated from 16× platinum to 21× platinum.
The album featured four hits, "Hold My Hand" (U.S. No. 10), "Let Her Cry" (U.S. No. 9), "Only Wanna Be with You" (U.S. No. 6), and "Time" (U.S. No. 14). The album's last single, "Drowning", was not as successful as its predecessors, peaking only on the Mainstream Rock chart. In 1995, Hootie & the Blowfish and Bob Dylan reached an out-of-court settlement for the group's unauthorized use of Dylan's lyrics in their song "Only Wanna Be with You." Miami Dolphins' Hall of Fame quarterback Dan Marino appeared along with several other athletes in the band's video for the song "Only Wanna Be with You." On February 28, 1996, at the 38th Annual Grammy Awards, Hootie & the Blowfish won the Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal (for the single "Let Her Cry") and the Grammy for "Best New Artist." The band appeared on MTV Unplugged on the eve of the release of their second album, Fairweather Johnson (1996). The album contained the hit single "Old Man and Me" (U.S. No. 13), and sold four million copies in the United States.
In 1998, the band performed on Frank Wildhorn's concept album of the musical The Civil War. Hootie & the Blowfish released their third studio album, Musical Chairs, on September 15, 1998. It spawned the singles "I Will Wait" and "Only Lonely."
The group covered the 1968 Orpheus hit "Can't Find the Time" for the soundtrack of the Jim Carrey movie Me, Myself & Irene (2000). The song's writer, Bruce Arnold, traded verses with Darius on several occasions when the band played live on the West Coast. The band kept to an extensive touring schedule, including an annual New Year's Eve show at Silverton Las Vegas (formerly known as Boomtown Las Vegas) in Enterprise, Nevada. Recently, Kris Kristofferson passed away at the age of 88 years old. He was an actor and country music star whose politics inspired the world.
What Lies Ahead in the 21st century
The country music of the 21st century will go through many changes. By the 2000s, we saw the war on terrorism, especially in dealing with the Iraq War. So, country music had a group of people who wanted to support the Iraq War and the war on terror in general with certain songs. The late Toby Keith made such music. Yet, the truth is that you can love America and critique political policy legitimately at the same time. Both concepts are not mutually exclusive. Also, there was a branch of country music that loved to be influenced by pop, rock, R&B, and hip hop music. Readily in the 2020s now, many country artists even rap some hip hop lyrics before expressing their country music notes or songs. A country music artist that represents that side of the coin is Kacey Musgraves. Musgraves is a pioneer who is steadfast in her views, unapologetic, and desires country music to be a beacon to appeal to everyone. That is what real music is a part of. Music is meant for all people. 21st century country music has grown internationally too.
Conclusion
The country music of the 1980s and the 1990s set up a major foundation for the country music of the 21st century. That time saw old-school country artists expressing their talents like Dolly Parton and George Strait. New school artists came on the scene like The Judds, Alan Jackson Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks, and Shania Twain with their unique set of style and charisma. These artists appeared to a wide spectrum of human beings, sold out stadiums (with thousands of people going into their concerts), and had a pop star popularity. Among rock, country, hip hop, and R&B music, these genres readily have folks who try not to go into the pop label. On the other hand, there is no growth among any musical genre without breaking the mold and expanding into many places of the world. Country music by the end of the 20th century evolved to allow the younger generation to establish their own standards of artistic expression found in people like Jewel, Lorrie Morgan, LeAnn Rimes, Mindy McCready, and Long Ryders. By the 21st century, we saw country music both have patriotic themes and more hip hop, pop, and rock themes merged into one. Country music's legacy will certainly be written more among the years and decades into the future indeed.
By Timothy
Thanksgiving 2024 Part 2.
Fashion (1900-2000 A.D.)
The 20th century of fashion from 1900 to 2000 has been the most diverse and wide-ranging changing fashion in human history. Subsequently, that is a fact. The fashion of the early 1900s is massively different than the fashion of the 1990s. In a span of 100 years, we saw a light year of change. The early 20th century saw fashion as continuing from the fashion of the late 19th century with Belle Epoque styles, the Art Deco movement, and other images made by Jacques Doucet and Mariano Fortuny. The Roaring Twenties saw women with dresses and short bobs. Corsets were being rejected, and many women wore experimental clothes. There was the flapper look. Coco Chanel back then was a major institution of fashion back then. Many men wore suits, ties, hats, and other clothing. The Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance were paramount culturally back then. By the World War II era, there was the zoot suit being popular. Claire McCardell, Anne Klein, and Cashin formed a trio of women who made a foundation of American sportswear. The 1950's and early 1960's saw a more conservative look for men and women. The bikini was in fashion by 1963. We saw new styles in the 1960's like black American cultural images (like hats, dashikis, etc.) and clothes that spread into the 1970's too. There were Afros, jeans, black leather suits, and other brands. Diverse fashion from around the world spread too. By the 1970's, Halston was a popular fashion designer. The 1970's saw suits, unisex clothes, and a retro look at times. The 1980's saw the mullet, spandex, and experimental clothing. We saw Japanese Fashion and African Americans setting up more fashion institutions too. We saw diverse supermodels rising up. The rise of new American fashion styles was developed by Donna Karan, Ralph Lauren, Perry Ellis, Dapper Dan, and Norma Kamali. The 1990s saw minimalism and fashion leaders like Gucci, Gap., Eddie Bauer, F.U.B.U, Tommy Hilfiger, March Jacobs, Michael Kors, Calvin Klein, and other people going about selling fashion. By the end of the 1990's, hip-hop music and hip-hop culture became hugely influential in fashion from black fashion designers, Nike, and independent black fashion icons who worked hard to create excellent imagery. The 20th century in fashion was hugely revolutionary.
The 1910s and the 1920s
By the 1900's, fashion changed with more industrialization and international trade. For men, there were top hats with old-school suits and canes worn. Many men wore ties and bow ties with suits of black, blue, and many colors. A new stiff suits were found by the late 1900s decade. Men working sports or just being outdoors wore golf shirts, baseball caps, sweaters, and jackets too. There were leather shoes and socks by this time. Women had silk dresses and other clothing. Corsets had the S-shape design. Many corsets had a narrow waste. Back in that time, the world was much more conservative than today in the 2020s, so clothing reflected more conservative, respectable political style of wardrobe. Many women wore silk satin and long sleeves. Some women wore light colors, spangles, rhinestones, and lace. Long evening dresses were commonplace. Children back then wore elaborate clothing too. Women wore feather caps, stripped silhouettes with buttons on them, and ankle boots. Many women wore sportswear to do arching, golf, and other activities.
By 1910, there was a backlash against the more traditional styles. The 1910s in Western fashion encompasses styles from 1910 to 1919. Western fashion in this period carries influences from oriental and neoclassical inspirations as well as the subsequent effects of World War I. Over the decade, women's fashion experienced a shift towards shorter hemlines and dropped waistlines in addition to the more practical garments necessitated by the war. In men's fashion, evening wear largely continued to adhere to previous conventions while trends in informal outerwear continued to evolve. During the period, shifts in fashion made way for styles associated with the Jazz Age of the 1920s. Many people in the 1910s wore more comfortable clothing. The German concert singer and wife of an architect Ann Muthesius wanted women to wear clothing to reflect individuality not confirmed to what Paris fashion leaders wanted people to do. Many women wore more free and loose clothing with pins and diverse color schemes. During WWI, men and women wore uniform-style clothing, leather shoes, and hats. Many women wore coveralls. Button wool suits in a dress form were worn by women too. This was the era of the new woman when women fought for their human rights. Paul Poiret was a designer during that time involved in fashion. The Orientalism style dominated this ear too with turbans, pearls, fur, robes, and dresses with elaborate designs.
"Fashion fades, only style remains." "In order to be irreplaceable one must always be different." "Adornment, what a science! Beauty, what a weapon! Modesty, what elegance!"
-Coco Chanel
The 1920s saw an explosion of massive fashion style. There was the Jazz Age and the Harlem Renaissance during the 1920s. Therefore, diversity was part of the whole ethos. Shoulder straps were worn by women. Many modern fashion styles were created by the famous designer Coco Chanel (1883-1971). She released her fragrance of Chanel No. 5 back in 1921. The flapper look took off during the 1920s. This look from women was not conservative. It was daring with short hair, short caps, shirts, suits, minimized dresses, shoes, and simplicity. Cardigan suits were being commonplace. Jean Patou invented the knit sweater. Elaborate hems caused clothing to be more stable. Shoes were modernized. The Roaring Twenties involved freedom of expression which was similar to the Sexual Revolution of the 1960s. Nothing is new under the sun. Men also wore suits, shirts, and umbrellas. Women wore rompers at the beach.
The 1930s and the 1940s
The 1930s involving fashion grew from glamour to practical uses of clothing. This time saw swing, the beginning of World War II. Black people, white people, Asian people, Latino people, and all people in the world were as conscious as possible in displaying diverse fashion styles. Dance and Hollywood styles of clothing were common back then. Travis Banton, Walter Plunekt, and Adrian designed clothes for people. Back then, Marlene Dietrich, Joan Crawford, Jean Harlow, and other old-school Hollywood actors and actresses wore dresses, suits, and hats. Dresses were shimmering with colors including gowns. Many gowns had belts, shoulder straps, bows, and necklaces. Some dresses embraced the classicism style. Madame Gres cultivated that imagery on clothing. An early bra called the brassiere was used by many women decades ago too. Classicism was bout embracing the ancient Roman style in a 20th-century fashion. Classicism had embroidery, tendrils, and a cape too. Many women had sports clothes, beach wear with belts, and hats too. Many men wore cloth caps, suits, and sportswear too. Some wore striped shirts and knit vests. This represented a casual look. Four-piece suits were very complicated filled with a dress shirt, tie, light jacket, and a big suit. The controversial Edward VII loved fashion too. By the 1930s, there was an elegant style of dress for men. Many men wore top hats, canes, and suits for dinner, dating, performances, and other activities. Many women wore suits and top hats like the famous Marlene Dietrich, who was in the 1930 film Morocco. There was the lounge suit, the white suit, the reefer jacket, and the dinner jacket suit. In Berlin, clothing was diverse as Berlin in the 1930s saw its own fashion and sexual revolution. By the 1930s, a chorus line of women of every color existed.
By the 1940s, there were dresses with feathers and logos of animals on them. Elsa Schiaparelli loved to be different to viewed fashion as art. She promoted the divided skirt. By the 1940s, World War II existed, so men and women wore military-style clothes and a blue-collar-type fashion style. Many women were in factories (because a large percentage of men were in Europe and Asia fighting during WWII), so many women wore overalls and coveralls. During WWII, women in America in ca. 400,000 joined the U.S. Army and almost 500,000 women in the UK joined the British armed forces. Women wore skirts, hats, and buttoned suits in the military. Rosie the Riveter with her clothes represented the women in America who worked to create products used in WWII from plane parts to bombs. Some women wore a khaki tunic and skirt in the military. A lot of black and gray suits were worn by men in everyday life. Many men wore many jackets too. Hollywood promoted a conservative style of clothing in movies. Items were in ration back then, so many clothes were used in different ways. Josephine Baker wore many suits as she helped to defeat the Nazis in France. Longer skirts were long by women in Paris and in other places too. By the end of the 1940s, there was a new optimism in society as WWII ended.
The 1950s and the 1960s
During the 1950s, many Americans moved into the suburbs from the cities. There was the New Look style promoted by designer Christian Dior. Luxury fabric, unicolor dresses, and wedding dresses were shown to the world. Christian Dior wanted simplicity to be the order of the day in expressing certain fashion styles. Dior loved to promote the silhouettes. New accessories with lace and veil were found in wedding dresses. Cocktail dresses were around with flower designs, black designs, and with sandal shoes. There were couture gowns too. By this time, Christobal Balenciaga changed fashion in many ways. He moved into Paris and promoted new garments. Feminine feathered coats were worn by women. Handbags and the bikini existed by the 1950s. There were sunglasses and more people were on the beach on vacation. Air travel increased, and people went to resort areas to relax from the day-to-day events of work. Men wore striped suits, conservative hats, and dress shoes. The teenage culture was modernized by the 1950s with jackets, string ties, and certain haircuts. The teenager was a recent cultural concept. Back in the day, once you hit 16, you either went to work or joined the military. By the 1950's, more teenagers (boys and girls) wore plaid T-shirts, flattop haircuts, jeans, wide skirts, and boots. There were Sidney Poitier, James Dean, Dorothy Dandridge, Marlon Brando, and other people who showed youth culture in films and television back in the 1950s. There was the sports style with equestrian clothes, fur jackets, and skating shoes. Many cheerleaders were commonplace by the 1950s.
The early 1960s in terms of culture and fashion was a continuation of the late 1950s. For example, durign the 1963 March on Washington, Sidney Potier and Ossie Davis wore conservative suits at the rally. Women like Daisy Bates and Josephine Baker wore dresses. There were more conservative dress and clothing. By the mid 1960s, things would change. There were polka-dot dresses worn by women. Handbags were elaborate. Women wore their hair shorter, and men wore beards more. Back in the early to mid 1960s, very few men wore long beards, except for mostly elderly people. Many people didn't know that back in the day, it was taboo for a man to grow long beards. The London model Twiggy used the mod short haircut, the mini skirt, and the suits in opposition to the more conservative fashion styles of the 1950s. There were minicoats and bright-colored skirts. By the 1960s, the Civil Rights Movement, the Black Power Movement, and the Sexual Revolution changed fashion and culture forever. By the late 1960s, experimentation in fashion was in vogue. Colored hair, sunglasses, raincoats, and stripped dresses were in existence. Designer Biba inspired much of the changing fashion trends of the time too. Many men wore pop clothing with striped suits, colored ties, and trailblazers. There were Cardin jerseys and unique ties. More men wore their hair longer. There were Afros shown by black men and black women more often by the mid to late 1960s. There were bell bottoms worn by men and women. With the Black Panthers and James Brown's son of I Am Black and Proud, Afrocentric fashion themes were displayed heavily in the 1960s with people like Diana Ross and Muhammad Ali being creative in their style of clothing. Yves St. Laurent has been an icon of fashion for long decades since that time.
According to author Daile Crotoe in Croote's article of "From Mods to Hippies: The Diverse 1960s Fashion":
"...The 1960s saw an unprecedented level of global fashion exchange. Ideas and styles flowed across borders, creating a rich tapestry of international influences. The British Invasion had a massive impact on global fashion. As British bands like The Beatles and The Rolling Stones conquered the music world, they brought their style with them. Suddenly, young people worldwide wanted to dress like their British idols. I’ve always been impressed by how quickly these trends spread in an era before the internet. Indian and African influences enriched Western fashion. The hippie movement embraced colorful, ethnic-inspired garments and accessories. Kaftans, tribal prints, and beaded jewelry became popular, reflecting a growing interest in non-Western cultures. Japanese designers began to make their mark on the global fashion scene. Designers like Kenzo Takada brought Eastern aesthetics to Western fashion, paving the way for the Japanese fashion revolution of later decades..."
The 1970s and the 1980s
The 1970s had dynamic fashion styles, which included some of the greatest fashion clothing of the 20th century. Popular music and movies influenced the fashion of the decades from Parliament to films (like Shaft and Coffy). Many prints came from India and other parts of the world. Soul music, hippie culture, glam rock, and other forms of expression influenced 1970s fashion styles. David Bowie used glam rock as an androgynous clothing style. Many men and women wore bell-bottomed pants. There were turtle-necked shirts and three-piece suits. Dark coats were worn by Richard Roundtree in the film Shaft, Pam Grier wore elaborate dresses in films, and Jim Kelly wore Afros in films like Black Belt Jones. Many men wore large sideburns, beards, and mustaches. Women wore long and straight hair. There were miniskirts and minidresses. Later, women wore hot pants. Young women wore crop tops by the end of the 1970s. There were platform shoes, leisure shoes, the start of the mohawk hairstyle (used in punk culture), Flokati rugs, lava lamps, and Papasan chairs. Many women wore denim jackets and headbands. The disco culture has tons of fashion styles, and many people in the 1970s roller skates in disco arenas. Disco was a music genre dominated by horn songs, supported by minority groups, and it spread globally in a short period of time. Individuality was common in the fashion during the 1970s. New technologies brought about advances such as mass production, higher efficiency, generating higher standards and uniformity. Generally, the most famous silhouette of the mid and late 1970s for both genders was that of tight on top and loose on bottom. The 1970s also saw the birth of the indifferent, anti-conformist casual chic approach to fashion, which consisted of sweaters, T-shirts, jeans, and sneakers.
New technologies brought about advances such as mass production, higher efficiency, generating higher standards and uniformity. Generally, the most famous silhouette of the mid and late 1970s for both genders was that of tight on top and loose on bottom. The 1970s also saw the birth of the indifferent, anti-conformist casual chic approach to fashion, which consisted of sweaters, T-shirts, jeans and sneakers. One notable fashion designer to emerge into the spotlight during this time was Diane von Fürstenberg, who popularized, among other things, the jersey "wrap dress." von Fürstenberg's wrap dress design, essentially a robe, was among the most popular fashion styles of the 1970s, would also be credited as a symbol of women's liberation. The French designer Yves Saint Laurent and the American designer Halston both observed and embraced the changes that were happening in society, especially the huge growth of women's rights and the youth counterculture. They successfully adapted their design aesthetics to accommodate the changes that the market was aiming for. Top fashion models in the 1970s were Lauren Hutton, Margaux Hemingway, Beverly Johnson, Gia Carangi, Janice Dickinson, Patti Hansen, Cheryl Tiegs, Jerry Hall, and Iman. By the late 1970s, there was a more relaxed look. Many women wore pantsuits, leisure suits, tracksuits, and sundresses worn with tight T-shirts. There were accessories like scarves, gold jewelry, ankle boots, boas, etc. By 1978, designer jeans were introduced. They were popular with designers creating them (like Calvin Klein, Gloria Vanderbilt, and Fiorucci). By the late 1970s, many men wore tracksuits, jumpsuits, and sportwear. Some men wore wristbands, necklaces, and headbands.
The fashion of the 1980s filled with experimentation. The fashion of the early 1980s was a continuation of the fashion of the late 1970s. Throughout the 1980s, hip-hop culture, heavy metal music, and films represented a large part of 1980s fashion. However, fashion became more extravagant during the 1980s. The 1980s included teased and colorfully-dyed hair, ripped jeans, neon clothing, and many colors and different designs which at first were not accepted. Significant hairstyle trends of the 1980s include the perm, the mullet, the Jheri curl, the hi-top fade, and big hair. Significant clothing trends of the 1980s include shoulder pads, jean jackets, leather pants, leather aviator jackets, jumpsuits, Members Only jackets, skin-tight acid-washed jeans, Izod Lacoste and "preppy" polo shirts, leggings and leg warmers (popularized in the film Flashdance), off-the-shoulder shirts, and cut sweatshirts (popularized in the same film). Miniskirts returned to mainstream fashion in the mid-1980s after a ten-year absence, mostly made of denim material. From that point on, miniskirts and minidresses have remained in mainstream fashion to this day. Makeup in the 1980s was aggressive, shining, and colorful. Women emphasized their lips, eyebrows, and cheeks with makeup. They used a lot of blush and eyeliner. Additional trends of the 1980s include athletic headbands, Ray-Ban Aviator sunglasses (popularized in the film Top Gun), Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses (popularized in the films Risky Business and The Blues Brothers and the TV series Miami Vice), Swatch watches, and the Rubik's Cube (became a popular fad throughout the decade). Girls and women also wore jelly shoes, large crucifix necklaces, and brassieres all inspired by Madonna's "Like a Virgin" music video. Many women wore large hairdos and puffed-up styles like Jackee Harry of the 227 show. Many women wore shoulder pads too. There were glamourous styles shown on shows like Dynasty. There was further growth of the supermodel culture during the 1980s with people like Brooke Shields, Christie Brinkley, Gia Carangi, Joan Severance, Kim Alexis, Carol Alt, Yasmin Le Bon, Renée Simonsen, Kelly Emberg, Inès de La Fressange, Tatjana Patitz, Elle Macpherson, and Paulina Porizkova. The early 1980s saw a minimalist style with a spaghetti strap dress. Bright colors were shown by the mid to late 1980s. By the end of the 1980s, many African Americans wore African medallions, Malcolm X hats, and four-finger rings representative of the growth of hip hop culture. KRS One, Rakim, Eric B, Salt-n-Pepa, Kool G Rap, Sha Rock, Monie, and other hip-hop legends of the 1980s The 1980s saw an increase of name-brand consumer brands involving clothes and shoes.
Japanese fashion designers Yohji Yamamoto, Rei Kawakubo, and Issey Miyake started a new school of fashion during the late 1980s called "Japanese Avant-Garde Fashion", which combined Asian cultural inspiration with mainstream European fashion. The Japanese spirit and culture that they presented to Europeans caused a fashion revolution in Europe which continued to spread worldwide. Large, framed sunglasses and glasses were worn by men and women. Involving shoes, Converse was popular in the first half of the 1980s including Adidas. Then, Air Jordan 1 took over the shoe game forever. The Air Jordan 1 was released in the royal blue color way to the public in 1985 and was an immediate success, still retaining its value in the fashion world today. Air Jordan was produced by Nike, Inc. being part of the Michael Jordan brand. Nike paid the NBA a fine for the show to be not completely white. Air Jordan is the most revolutionary tennis shoe in human history. Soon, other manufacturers introduced premium athletic shoes. Hip-hop culture in the 1980s promoted Adidas sneakers, Jordan, Reebok, New Balance, Kangol hats, and other forms of necklaces and chains. MC Hammer, Run DMC, Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff, MC Lyte, Queen Latifah, and other artists of the 1980s showed diverse fashion styles. Fila, Puma, Avia, and other brands were very common back then. Hip Hop fashion represents both fashion from the streets of urban community and high-end luxury fashion. Harlem designer and shop owner Dapper Dan embodied this concept by redesigning luxury products and making them available to those who would not typically associate themselves with it. Dapper Dan was most famous for deconstructing a Louis Vuitton garment and turning it into his signature jacket. He reconstructed garments for many music icons and celebrities in the 1980s before getting shut down by lawyers in the early 1990s. As Dapper Dan has said (on the 2022 episode of The Limits with Jay Williams):
"...During the sixties, there was a lot of revolution. It was a change in the music industry. You had the sound of Philadelphia and all that... Berry Gordy allowed the musicians to change the platform when he had Martin Gaye saying, "What's going on," you know what I mean? That shift, that philosophical shift for people of color made a big difference for us young guys... James Brown saying, "Say it loud, I'm Black and I'm proud." We don't have that today. We don't have a strong enough voice for that today...I never allowed myself to get fixed in a certain identity. Every artist that came to me, and all my clients [that] came to me...I didn't create solely from myself... I looked at their lyrics. I looked at their lifestyle and the message they wanted to bring, and I created from that. So I became every artist. And throughout time, I kept dealing with different artists and representing what they wanted to say and how they wanted to look... So throughout my whole history of creating, I constantly adapted to the artists...So what I like to tell young people is, Dapper Dan does not dictate fashion. He translates culture because all these cultural icons that come along, I give them the look that goes with what they want to do..."
This interest in luxury apparel expanded past Dapper Dan - American fashion brands Tommy Hilfiger, Ralph Lauren, and Nautica were expanding rapidly and embraced by hip-hop culture as an indicator of status. The Pan-African colors of green, yellow, red, black, and green were popular among African Americans plus Kente cloth. Many suburban teens wore preppy fashion. Many of them worn Brook Brothers suits, Polo Ralph Lauren shirts, Izod Lacoste, etc. There were ponytails, large hair, mullets, jerri curls, and high-top fades worn. Artistic expression was the fashion of the 1980s.
The 1990s
The 1990s had massive economic prosperity in many parts of the world. Fashion back then included a minimalist style and design. The 1990s rejected a lot of the bright colors of the 1980s including jeans, jerseys, and more simplistic styles. The early 1990s had high-top fade being expressed by African Americans. There were shorter haircuts for men. Flannel shirts were being shown in grunge culture. There were slap bracelets, sideburns, and an anti-fashion style. There were baggy jeans, cargo shorts, and baseball caps worn backward. Jordans dominated the decades in tennis shoe fashion along with Reebok, New Balance, etc. There were oversized sweatshirts, loose-fitting teens, and clothes with logos on them. By the mid to late 1990s, more people wore tattoos and piercings. Even as late as the 1980s, very few people wore tattoos and piercings in the mainstream which was popularized by Allen Iverson, many rock bands, Dennis Rodman, and other pop stars. That changed in the 1990s when more people wore belly button piercings, and Dennis Rodman dyed his hair in many colors. Many men wore tribal-style arm bands. The 1990s saw the growth of supermodels dominating the fashion industry. These models included people of every color and background increasingly like Nadja Auermann, Tyra Banks, Christie Brinkley, Carla Bruni, Naomi Campbell, Helena Christensen, Cindy Crawford, Karen Elson, Linda Evangelista, Yasmeen Ghauri, Bridget Hall, Shalom Harlow, Eva Herzigova, Michele Hicks, Kirsty Hume, Milla Jovovich, Yasmin Le Bon, Audrey Marnay, Kristen McMenamy, Kate Moss, Karen Mulder, Carolyn Murphy, Nadège, Erin O'Connor, Kirsten Owen, Tatjana Patitz, Maggie Rizer, Claudia Schiffer, Stephanie Seymour, Tatiana Sorokko, Stella Tennant, Christy Turlington, Amber Valletta, Guinevere Van Seenus, Alek Wek, and Amy Wesson. Even in the fashion industry, there was massive racism, so Naomi Campbell to her credit publicly and privately fought racism in fashion culture.
One of the most influential group of models during the early 1990s was the Big Five, whose fame and social power allegedly surpassed that of many movie stars. The Big Five consisted of supermodels Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington, Linda Evangelista, and Tatjana Patitz. Whether booked as individuals or as an elite group, each supermodel gained worldwide success and had great influence on the fashion industry. Naomi Campbell was the first black woman to grace the cover of French Vogue, Time, and American Vogue's September issue. Cindy Crawford was the highest-paid model on the planet in 1995 per Forbes. Christy Turlington was known for being a reliable model who garnered over 500 covers during her career and most notably, signed a contract with Maybelline for an annual fee of $800,000 for twelve days' work. Linda Evangelista was known as the industry's "chameleon" for her ability to suit a multitude of styles. Evangelista also infamously coined the phrase, "We don't wake up for less than $10,000 a day." Tatjana Patitz, the last of the Big Five, continues to be regarded as one of the "original supermodels" and even after her retirement, she remains in demand periodically by such designer houses as Jean-Paul Gaultier and Chanel. Later in the decade, Tatjana was replaced in the Big Five by supermodel Claudia Schiffer, who is one of the most successful supermodels in the world, holding the record for the most magazine covers according to The Guinness Book of World Records.
“Never dull your shine for somebody else.”
"“One thing my mom used to tell me was to look to the other side, and know that my present is not going to be everything. So if I’m having a bad day, she goes, ‘Just imagine tomorrow. This is going to be over. This is going to be done with."
"“Stop saying these negative things about yourself. Look in the mirror and find something about yourself that’s positive and celebrate that!”
-Tyra Banks
Tyra Banks grown into a high level by the 1990s as a model. She was also an actress in films and shows like The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and Higher Learning. Tyra Banks represented the new school model with talent, with swagger, and with a hip hop/R&B style at the same time. Tyra Banks was on the Sports Illustrated cover in 1997 (plus in other years) and is a prominent producer and businesswoman by the 21st century (with the show of America's Top Model that helped to promote future modeling legends). Kate Moss was a young model in the 1990s. She was exploited by people to promote the controversial movement of "heroin chic" which was criticized for promoting eating disorders. Tyson Beckford, Tim Boyce, and Marcus Schenkenberg were popular models in the 1990s too. Lisa Lopes promoted neon colors on clothes. Many people wore cowboy boots, slouch shocks, Keds, etc. From 1991 on, sports bras, hoodies, shortalls, leotards, and bodysuits worn as tops with jeans, a sweatshirt over a turtleneck with jeans rolled up to show off their slouch socks were popular with young girls, teens, college girls, and young women in the UK and Europe. Tyra Banks is a fashion icon who was very popular in the 1990s with a new school, hip hop-influenced expression. She was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, and she was a professional actress too. Janet Jackson promoted massive fashion styles in the 1990s too.
By the mid to late 1990s, influences from Asia and from the 1970s were in the 1990s. Many men wore graphic print T-shirt, athletic clothing, Champion clothes, and baseball jackets. Hip Hop culture was popular too with Fubu and other styles that focused on colors, matching images, and being comfortable. Track suits, Baja Jackets, and the 8-ball jacket were promoted in hip-hop culture. Michael Hoban promoted hip-hop fashion too. Southern hip-hop provided a platform for fashion designers and musical artists to collaborate forming an influential subculture of anti-fashion and alternative fashion designs, especially the popular recycled clothing worn by Arrested Development and Goodie Mob. The 1990s saw a massive sportswear culture with NY Yankees logo sweaters, khaki cargo pants, and hoodies. DMX promoted the ski goggles during the late 1990s. Women's hairstyles by the early 1990s had a big, curly style (that was shown in the 1980s). By the end of the 1990s, there were more pixie cuts, short hair, and bangs. Many women wore ponytails. Men wore cornrows, fades, mullets, curtained hair, Ceasars, and some men dyed their hair. Many men wore a conservative haircut in the 1990s too. Women wore diverse makeup by the 1990s.
Conclusion
Fashion in the 20th century was a game changer. It saw the most diverse, interesting, and exciting fashion in human history. The fashion of the early 20th century was lightyears different than the fashion of the latter 20th century. The 20th century saw unprecedented amounts of scientific discoveries, scopes of warfare, new modes of communication, and wide-ranging art and entertainment. Population growth in the 20th century was monumental being from 1.6 billion people to about 6.2 billion people by the end of the century. Just in 100 years, the 20th century saw World I, World II, the Spanish flu pandemic, the creation of nuclear weapons, the modern-day Civil Rights Movement, the Internet, space travel, and digital computing. That relates to the massive changes in fashion from Victorian clothes of the early 20th century to more designs and logos on clothing by the 1990s. During this time, we saw the rise of more fashion designers, supermodels, and other icons of fashion culture. We have Naomi Campbell making history and Dapper Dan representing hip-hop culture involving fashion designs too. We saw unique, revolutionary shoes like Jordan, Adidas, Reebok, and New Balance changing how people express their individuality too. The future fashion of the 21st century will include a hybrid of new-school and old-school styles coming together. The 21st century saw an acceleration of the Internet and social media culture along with the growth of A.I. technology. Likewise, the commitment to creativity and excellence persisted in the 21st century as well.
By Timothy