The Black Aesthetic
Blackness is an aesthetic that is mainly attached to black people, and presents itself in fashion, language, and music to embrace and appreciate culture and identity. It has called to reflect on our past as a mark of legacy and inspired achievements with pride.
Black culture has a profound impact on music and it has given birth to genres like Jazz, Rap, R&B, and Afro beats. One of the main forms of music was rap in the 7o’s in African American communities In NYC, where block parties and DJs started isolating and extended the instrumental breaks in funk and soul music. through this many underground/mainstream artists like grandmaster flash, run dmc, and nwa had been very popular and mainly was a voice to societal problems, racism, love, self worth and many more. It became foundational for a breakthrough and revolutionary form of music and inspired many. Lots of other artists in different genres, such as Lil Baby, Beyonce, Burna Boy, and Eryka Badu paved a way for music and is heard by millions of people worldwide and leaves a legacy for black artists in the music industry.
Black people have many unique forms of expression in language and dialect spoken over the years and has emerged as a distinct and linguistic style. African American Vernacular English is a dialect popularized within the black community in the southern United States. It has originated from languages such as Creole and Gullah. Having its own features of grammar and vocabulary, AAVE was initiated by Black Americans; it opens up a diversity in slang where it doesn’t normalize a “white” or “American” english.
The Black community has a consistent and outstanding influence on fashion industries, with trends attributed by Black designers. The Harlem renaissance was a start and a cultural revival for black people and popular fashion wear like flappers and zoot suits were notable. There is more recognition in the 1960s where artists like Zelda Wynn Valdez created the playboy bunny and the black panther party wore all leather outfits and dashikis and afros. Ebony magazines played a role in normalizing black luxury. These gave a solid foundation of expression and confidence to embrace in their natural self and having freedom. It also paved a way for popular designers in the 21st century, like Virgil Abloh, Kanye West, Dapper Dan and Rihanna to create clothes and brands that are being worn all over the world and falls into streetwear, vintage, minimalism, and classy style.
