PUCK

The era of change

HARL EM , A TI M E FOR NEW ARTS

WrittenbyMiahDiaz

With new and

upcoming jazz singers like
Billie Holiday, and influential
jazz players like Louis
Armstrong, the Harlem
Renaissance is a time to be
alive! Not only do musicians
play as a contributor in this
movement, but as do famous
artists like Aaron Douglas
who's work depicted the "New
Negro" philosophy, poet
Langston Hughes, and civil
rights activists James Weldon
Johnson.
The Harlem Renaissance is
the idea of African Americans
forming a close knit
community in Harlem, New
York where they can erase the
issue of discrimination and
live in this spiritual coming of
age. In this populated black
community, famous artists
have risen to share their range
of emotions from rage and
anger, to optimism and hope.
Poet Langston Hughes
describes the Harlem
Renaissance as "the

expression of our individual

dark-skinned selves," in The
Negro Artists and the Racial
Mountain. Though the tales
are sorrow, it encourages
abolitionists and shines a light
on discrimination to white
Americans. Our fascination of
these upcoming artists and
music has fueled to a new
culture full of jazz music. The
taste of this new culture has
satisfied our dancing feet, and
opened our eyes to a new
freedom.

A swanky spot that is

encouraged to visit is The
Cotton Club on 142nd St &
Lenox Avenue. This jive night
club welcomes whites only to
listen to some of the best
black musicians from Harlem.
You can catch one of Duke's
Ellington's show, as he plays
six nights a week. With
apparently a former gang
member, Owen Madden, puts
increasing pressure on the
black performer but
Ellington's performance is
outstanding and keeps

audience in a mellow mood.

With the rise of these
talented African Americans,
the future for night clubs will
continue to thrive as us young
folks continue to listen to the
new genre of music. For
African Americans, Harlem is a
place where they can improve
in their standard of living and
thrive on their new
perspective of racial pride
and individualism.

DONT M I SS YOUR FA V ORI TE JA Z Z

M USI CI A NS PERFORM I NG A T THE COTTON
CLUB

DUK E ELLI NGTON PERFORM I NG WI TH HI S

ORCHESTRA
SI X NI GHTS A WEEK

Miah Diaz