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By Jess Santacroce
Music Writer, 955 The Heat, Phoenix Radio Whatever your favorite type of music, it depends on other genres of music to exist. Anytime you listen to music, you are listening to influence, blending, and borrowing from at least one other type of music. Country music fans wouldn’t have the music they love today if not for African music Pretty much all music we listen to today has roots in Africa. Samba, Salsa, Gospel, Hip-Hop, Reggae, Rap, Jazz, Blues, and R&B are commonly known to have developed from African people moving into other parts of the world and taking their music with them, even if that was the only thing they got to keep. Most of us think that country music is an exception, that it grew entirely from immigrants from Europe bringing their folk music to the new nation. Country music would indeed not exist as we know it today if not for immigrants from Europe, but it also would not exist without the influence of music from Africa. Many of the instruments closely associated with country music, such as banjos, fiddles, and harmonicas, are based on African instruments. Lyrically, country music directly borrows from the music brought to the United States by those who were made to come here in the slave trade. As would be expected, much of this music centered on themes of misfortune and despair, both common themes in country music, especially country music from the 1950s-1970s (Stoia 2021). Over the past twenty years, these similarities between country music and musical genres more directly associated with the music brought over from Africa has even evolved into country-rap fusion music. In 2004, Country singer Tim McGraw and Rapper Nelly teamed up for “Over and Over.” In the 2020’s, Moran Wallen regularly blends country with rap via collaborations with rap artists. In 2022, he teamed up with Rapper Lil Durk for “Broadway Girls.” In 2025, he released “Miami,” a song in which he raps about being a “redneck” and having “sand in my boots” against the backdrop of Hip-Hop music and background vocals. Blues fans have a connection to Greek folk music American Blues is completely American. Most sources trace it back to the 1860s in the south, where it began as the music of Black Americans during Reconstruction and Jim Crow laws. Music termed “Blues” in other countries is not exactly the same, unless of course, it is American Blues being performed overseas. But other countries and cultures do have their own versions of Blues music, including Greece. When hearing Greek music for the first time, most Americans unfamiliar with the culture would expect to either hear folk music or pop music sung in Greek. Both of those things do exist, and are the first things that come up when you search for Greek music on streaming platforms today. Finding Greek Blues takes a bit more digging, but even if you cannot understand the lyrics, the differences between Greek pop, Greek folk music, and the distinctive style of music that is the Greek version of the Blues, Rebetiko stand out. Rebetiko, often called “outlaw blues”, developed between the turn of the century and the 1950’s in Greece. Like American Blues, it was born out of the voice of those with the least power in society, in this case the poorest people in Greece. The music will likely make many American listeners think of folk music at first, as Rebetiko uses many of the same instruments. However, Rebetiko’s status as underground music of the lower classes, the vocal stylings, and the lyrics’ emphasis on topics like substance abuse, unrequited love, death, exile, and loss of love bring it firmly back into the Blues category (Athens Insider, 2020). Although some sources seem to suggest that Rebetiko died out in the 1950’s, travel and vacation websites devoted to exploring Athens occasionally feature articles directing tourists to current places to find genuine Rebetiko musicians. Jazz and Reggae both had a strong influence on Punk music Most people miss the connection between Jazz and Punk, but that is only because so many have a narrow definition of “Jazz,” limiting it to swing and big band era legends like Duke Ellington and Ella Fitzgerald, or Cool Jazz artists like Chet Baker and Dave Brubeck. Writing for the website “Musician Wave” in 2021, writer Brian Clark’s article “Fifteen different types of Jazz music,” details fifteen distinct forms of Jazz, including the Free Jazz that most strongly influenced Punk music. Lou Reed was particularly influenced by Free Jazz, primarily Ornette Coleman. Reed was such a fan of Coleman, he would attend his concerts even when he couldn’t afford to go inside, and listen to what he could hear from outside the building. Coleman’s music had an immense impact on Reed’s music, with “Lonely Woman” often mentioned as the one song that Reed would continuously listen to. Reggae and Punk share a focus on issues of social class and race, with many Punk artists being big Reggae fans. Bassist Paul Simonon of The Clash was particularly noted for bringing Reggae-infused sound into his band’s music. Several of the band’s songs can be described as “Reggae-inspired,” with one song, “Police and Thieves” a Punk cover of a Reggae song. The intermingling of these two genres has lead to a subgenre of Punk known as “Reggae Punk.” with bands such as “Bearin Peace” a 2010s band that layered Reggae style vocals over Punk guitar with a Reggae beat, and West Swell, a California based band that seems to completely blend both styles, along with elements of Rock and Alternative music. Next time you listen to an old favorite band or song, listen for the presence of other types of music. You just might hear something different this time. Works Cited: Please visit these sites for more detailed information about some of the topics covered: Athens Insider (2020). Rebetiko: Music of the outlaws. https://www.athensinsider.com/rebetiko-music-of-the-outlaws/ June 17, 2025 Clark, B. (2021). 15 different types of Jazz music. Musician Wave. https://www.musicianwave.com/types-of-jazz-music-styles-subgenres/ June 17, 2025 Stoia, N. (2021). Blues lyrics formulas in early country music, rhythm and blues and rock and roll. Music Theory Online https://www.mtosmt.org/ojs/index.php/mto/article/view/657 June 17, 2025
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