Louis Armstrong goes down in history as what scholars call the вЂњ first great jazz soloistвЂќ and quite possibly the single most influential players in American music.

Who he inspired: Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Prima, Tom Waits Essential listening: вЂњWest End BluesвЂќ (1928) Michael Ochs Archives // Getty Images Show More Show Less He was hospitalized in 1917, moved to a mental institution, and died April 1 of that year. Joplin by 1916 was suffering from advanced stages of syphilis, which historians surmise he contracted decades earlier. Joplin published his most famous work, вЂњMaple Leaf Rag,вЂќ in 1899 and thereby cemented his legacy as the King of Ragtime. Ragtime drew on songs from minstrel shows, cakewalk dance rhythms, and Black banjo music. He collaborated with local musicians to write ragtime music, a style of syncopated beats and accents popular at the time that would form the foundations of the Harlem stride style of piano playing and the forthcoming jazz era. There, he got jobs at two social clubs for Black men that were founded in 1898: the Black 400 and Maple Leaf clubs. He eventually settled in Sedalia, Missouri,В for several years. By the time he was a teenager, he was making a living as a music instructor and piano player, traveling as far as Syracuse, New York,В for gigs and playing in various groups including the Queen City Cornet Band and Texas Medley Quartette. The second of seven children, his father was a former slave who worked on the railroads for a living and played violin his mother was a house cleaner, singer, and banjo player. Scott Joplin grew up along the borders of Texas and Arkansas in a musical family. Who he inspired: Claude Debussy, Igor Stravinsky, Fats Waller Essential listening: вЂњMaple Leaf RagвЂќ (1899) Born: 1868 (approximate-actual birth date unknown) KMazur // Getty Images Show More Show Less 2 of63 Artists highlighted in this gallery changed the course of music by doing something entirely new with it rather than simply building upon the. To help narrow the field, we focused on artists whom scholars can definitively conclude altered the musical landscape in some dramatic fashion. Paring the list down to just 41В was a challenge (the gallery could easily include hundreds)-so there are certainly icons missing, including powerhouses like LightninвЂ™ Hopkins, Wilson Pickett, Mary Wells, Roberta Flack, Tina Turner, and Gloria Gaynor-each of whom has made significant contributions to music in his or her own right.

To take a closer look at how Black musicians shaped American music, Stacker pored through historical documents, recordings, Billboard charts, and studied similarities in various musical acts over time to determine 41В artists music wouldnвЂ™t be the same without. Other times, artists unwittingly create new genres-whether Fela Kuti with Afrobeat, Frankie Knuckles with house music, or Fats Domino with ska.

But throughout American history, there are examples of artists who have been so transformative as to change musical genres themselves. From country-western, which draws upon banjo music from Africa, to rock вЂnвЂ™ roll, begun by a Black woman playing electric guitar in 1938, American music canвЂ™t be separated out from its rich history of diversity and experimentation.Д®very artist transforms his or her medium simply by working in it, and it so follows that every musician changes the art form slightly justВ by creating and performing songs. There is no American music that doesnвЂ™t have Black roots. Black artists music wouldn't be the same without

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