Rhythm and Blackness
“She dances like a Black girl.”
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4z5HYNqx3n8
What?
Is there something distinct about the way in which we move or speak that is noticeably…Black? Before, I would have denied this. There’s no way you can identify movement or speech as distinctly Black. Right?
Maybe.
A couple weeks ago, I read the book This is How We Flow: Rhythm in Black Cultures. The editor introduces the concept of morphic resonance to explain what she describes as a distinct rhythm that has been passed down from generation to generation, a rhythm that we brought to America from Africa with drums. A rhythm that survived slavery and Jim Crow through spirituals and gospel. A rhythm that survives the projects and post-racial America through soul and hip hop. A rhythm that ties together the entire Black experience. The one thing that binds all children of the Diaspora.
Morphic resonance is the notion that we inherit more than genetic stuff from our parents and our forefathers and perhaps rhythm is inherited as well. It’s the idea that we tap into this unique rhythm whenever we move or even speak. And perhaps it is this rhythm that is synonymous with cool. It is our unique ownership of this rhythm that makes Black and cool synonymous. We own cool.
And for that reason, it is a shock when someone who isn’t Black is able to tap into that distinct rhythm, the rhythm that is so prevalent in all of us that it has become synonymous with Blackness.
Do you buy it? Is there a rhythm that is unique to us? Is that why it’s okay to make statements such as “she dances like a Black girl”?
Hi Tamara,
Thanks for this post. I have to admit, I sometimes wonder how it is that Black people are ‘naturally’ better than other races when it comes to performing “cool” styles of song and dance, particularly in the genres of jazz, hip-hop, gospel and r&b. These are areas of song and dance in which Black people have tended to dominate, but I attribute this dominance to events that have uniquely shaped Black American history, the practice of tradition/cultural preservation, and persistent pigeonholing—not genetics. While the notion of “morphic resonance” that you provided doesn’t explicitly link the “rhythm in Black cultures” to genetics, it runs the risk of doing so by ignoring or placing insufficient emphasis on the aforementioned, more credible factors. ‘Owning’ what’s popularly perceived as “cool” about our heritage will not and should not stop others from ‘imitating’ it, nor should it discourage us ‘proprietors’ from transcending the real and imagined boundaries connected to that ‘ownership’.
The “rhythm in Black cultures” is distinct, but no more mystical or innate to Black people than salsa dancing is to Latinos or Riverdance is to the Irish. One’s ability to expertly affect art forms within and outside of her culture can be natural, learned or a combination of both. How exactly can we tell which it is and, perhaps more importantly, why should it matter? Consider the rare talents of Teena Marie, Eminem, and Kenny G. These white artists have not only been embraced by Black audiences, but also praised by their Black counterparts for their artistic contributions. Who would dare deem their ability to “tap into that distinct rhythm” of lesser value just because they’re not of African descent?
Moreover, is it less “cool” when Black artists seek to dominate genres of music other than jazz, hip-hop, gospel and r&b? Kathleen Battle, for instance, is a Black American opera singer who was once recognized in TIME Magazine as the greatest coloratura soprano in the world. Just because opera didn’t “come out of Africa”, should Battle be excommunicated for “performing whiteness”? What would we think if a white person posed the question, “Is it a shock that Kathleen Battle was able to tap into our distinct rhythm, the rhythm that is so prevalent in all of us that it has become synonymous with whiteness?” Just food for thought.
In conclusion, I don’t buy the notion of “morphic resonance,” but I may read more on it out of curiosity. At the moment, it seems just as absurd as saying whites are inherently better at money management, standardized tests, and child rearing.
Hi Tamara,
Thanks for this post. I have to admit, I sometimes wonder how it is that Black people are ‘naturally’ better than other races when it comes to performing “cool” styles of song and dance, particularly in the genres of jazz, hip-hop, gospel and r&b. These are areas of song and dance in which Black people have tended to dominate, but I attribute this dominance to events that have uniquely shaped Black American history, the practice of tradition/cultural preservation, and persistent pigeonholing—not genetics. While the notion of “morphic resonance” that you provided doesn’t explicitly link the “rhythm in Black cultures” to genetics, it runs the risk of doing so by ignoring or placing insufficient emphasis on the aforementioned, more credible factors. ‘Owning’ what’s popularly perceived as “cool” about our heritage will not and should not stop others from ‘imitating’ it, nor should it discourage us ‘proprietors’ from transcending the real and imagined boundaries connected to that ‘ownership’.
The “rhythm in Black cultures” is distinct, but no more mystical or innate to Black people than salsa dancing is to Latinos or Riverdance is to the Irish. One’s ability to expertly affect art forms within and outside of her culture can be natural, learned or a combination of both. How exactly can we tell which it is and, perhaps more importantly, why should it matter? Consider the rare talents of Teena Marie, Eminem, and Kenny G. These white artists have not only been embraced by Black audiences, but also praised by their Black counterparts for their artistic contributions. Who would dare deem their ability to “tap into that distinct rhythm” of lesser value just because they’re not of African descent?
Moreover, is it less “cool” when Black artists seek to dominate genres of music other than jazz, hip-hop, gospel and r&b? Kathleen Battle, for instance, is a Black American opera singer who was once recognized in TIME Magazine as the greatest coloratura soprano in the world. Just because opera didn’t “come out of Africa”, should Battle be excommunicated for “performing whiteness”? What would we think if a white person posed the question, “Is it a shock that Kathleen Battle was able to tap into our distinct rhythm, the rhythm that is so prevalent in all of us that it has become synonymous with whiteness?” Just food for thought.
In conclusion, I don’t buy the notion of “morphic resonance,” but I may read more on it out of curiosity. At the moment, it seems just as absurd as saying whites are inherently better at money management, standardized tests, and child rearing.
Aron, please do read more about the theory because it is more nuanced than i presented here and it tends more toward what you are saying than i have presented here. The book is a great read. And it doesn’t imply that that rhythm is somehow inherently cool. That is what i interpret from the way that others discuss our culture.
And, i would argue that it is somehow less ‘cool’ when Black artists seek to expand and branch out into other genres. i don’t think that it’s right, but i do think that our community on whole may see “performing whiteness” as less cool. Just my opinion.
As for your last comment, i don’t understand how you can make that statement since the idea of ‘morphic resonance’ pertains exclusively to expression. But okay.
Thanks for your thought-provoking response!
Aron, please do read more about the theory because it is more nuanced than i presented here and it tends more toward what you are saying than i have presented here. The book is a great read. And it doesn’t imply that that rhythm is somehow inherently cool. That is what i interpret from the way that others discuss our culture.
And, i would argue that it is somehow less ‘cool’ when Black artists seek to expand and branch out into other genres. i don’t think that it’s right, but i do think that our community on whole may see “performing whiteness” as less cool. Just my opinion.
As for your last comment, i don’t understand how you can make that statement since the idea of ‘morphic resonance’ pertains exclusively to expression. But okay.
Thanks for your thought-provoking response!
Tamara, thanks for replying and I’ll certainly check it out. I understand that “morphic resonance” pertains to expression, but it’s the idea that this form of expression and whites’ general inability to “tap into it” stems from something innate that I find problematic. One could argue that money (mis)management, performance on standardized tests, and child rearing also pertain to expression (i.e., expression of “values”). An expression of culture and expression of values can be one in the same, and neither is exempt from the “it’s just natural” argument, which I tend to find absurd. Hence my last remark.
Tamara, thanks for replying and I’ll certainly check it out. I understand that “morphic resonance” pertains to expression, but it’s the idea that this form of expression and whites’ general inability to “tap into it” stems from something innate that I find problematic. One could argue that money (mis)management, performance on standardized tests, and child rearing also pertain to expression (i.e., expression of “values”). An expression of culture and expression of values can be one in the same, and neither is exempt from the “it’s just natural” argument, which I tend to find absurd. Hence my last remark.