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Higher Ground arose out of an ongoing conversation between the Black Community Services Center, the Institute for Diversity in the Arts, and myself. As an African and African American Studies major, I had the opportunity to concentrate my studies on the intersection of identity, diversity, and aesthetics. In multiple courses, I examined how various art forms were informed by ethnic identity development, religious traditions, and sociopolitical environments. Yet in my own life, I tried to separate my artistic practice from my religious identity. The appeal of mass acceptance encouraged me to stray away from spiritual matters in my music. Such avoidance I realized was not only a rejection of myself and a crucial part of my character, but also an indicator of my view of the world’s perception of my religion and ultimately, my identity.

I saw such rejection reflected in the lack of scholarly literature about Black Sacred Music; I found few journals that touched the topic and even fewer that focused solely on the traditional gospel music that arose in the mid-twentieth century or the spirituals that developed in antebellum America. The lack of literature could be partially attributed to the fact that this body of music and the people from which it originated customarily shared their history through the oral tradition. And historically, these same marginalized communities have often been barred from publishing scholarly works, especially those that legitimize the cultural practices of such communities. I could not find my history in the literature, and it hurt.

During my junior year, I spent three months in South Africa, immersing myself in the culture, sights, and sounds of Cape Town. Spending the majority of my time building relationships and documenting the music I heard, I found incredible influences of African American Gospel music on Black South African Gospel. It was no surprise that such sharing had taken place, seeing the impact of other genres of music including swing, jazz, and bebop on South African music in the 1950s and 60s. But what I also learned from various community members was that this music lifted their souls throughout the Apartheid struggle. Similar to what was seen during the Civil Rights Era in America, Gospel had functioned as an arsenal for protest music in Apartheid protest.  How did I not know about Gospel’s international appeal? How did I not learn of its impact on social movements even beyond the Diaspora? I soon learned after excavating musicology journals and other materials that Gospel was sung in multiple movements through Europe and reached Asia as well.

In these moments, I realized that I wanted to document such history, both in the form that it has historically been shared (i.e. through music) and through a medium where it has not been documented (i.e. scholarly literature). I decided to write my Honors Thesis on the historic relationship between Black Sacred Music and social justice movements, and that thesis became the basis for my musical, Higher Ground.  In an act of acceptance of my Black Christian identity and a legitimization of this genre of music, I am so pleased to share this work with you.

Sincerely,

Jess