- Née:
- Bernice Johnson
- Born:
- October 4, 1942, Albany, Georgia, U.S. (age 84)
Bernice Johnson Reagon
-
Who is Bernice Johnson Reagon?
Bernice Johnson Reagon, born October 4, 1942, is an African American musician and historian. Reagon's work ranges from African spirituals to civil rights anthems. In 1961, she was arrested at a protest march and suspended from Albany State College. The following year, she joined the SNCC Freedom Singers and sang at political meetings, jails, and the 1963 March on Washington.
Reagon became active in black nationalism and, as a member of the Harambee Singers, wrote militant songs. In 1973, she formed the a cappella group Sweet Honey In The Rock. During her first years with Sweet Honey In The Rock, Reagon earned a doctorate in history at Howard University (1975). In 1983, she became a curator at the National Museum of American History.
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What kind of music is Bernice Johnson Reagon known for?
Bernice Johnson Reagon is known for a wide range of musical styles, from African spirituals to civil rights anthems. Her early musical experiences included the sacred music of her father’s Baptist church. Reagon's work includes performing a cappella music ranging from traditional folk, African chant, field hollers, Baptist hymns, blues, jazz, and rap music. As the founder of the singing group Sweet Honey In The Rock, she addressed political and personal issues through music, touring extensively and recording numerous albums.
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How did Bernice Johnson Reagon help the civil rights movement?
Bernice Johnson Reagon contributed to the civil rights movement through her music and activism. As a member of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), she was arrested during a protest march in 1961. Reagon then joined the SNCC Freedom Singers, performing at political meetings, jails, and the 1963 March on Washington. Later, as part of the Harambee Singers, she wrote militant songs reflecting black nationalism. Reagon also documented the movement through her work at the Smithsonian, including the "Voices of the Civil Rights Movement" collection.
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What is the group Sweet Honey in the Rock, and how is Reagon connected to it?
Bernice Johnson Reagon is an African American musician and historian known for her work ranging from African spirituals to civil rights anthems.
In 1973, Reagon founded the a cappella group Sweet Honey In The Rock. The group, consisting of four to six women, addressed political and personal issues through a unique sound that blended traditional folk, African chant, field hollers, Baptist hymns, blues, jazz, and rap music. Sweet Honey In The Rock toured widely, recorded many albums, and in 1985, coordinated the closing cultural festivities for the United Nations Decade for Women Conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Reagon retired from the group in 2004.
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In what ways did Reagon work as a historian?
Bernice Johnson Reagon's work as a historian is reflected in her career at the Smithsonian Institution, where she began as a cultural historian in 1974. In 1977, she established the Smithsonian’s Program in Black American Culture and was promoted to curator at the National Museum of American History in 1983.
Her historical projects include Voices of the Civil Rights Movement: Black American Freedom Songs, 1960–66, a three-record collection, and Wade in the Water, a long-term project on African American sacred song and worship traditions. Reagon also contributed to award-winning television productions such as the Eyes on the Prize and Africans in America series. She was appointed distinguished professor of history at American University in 1993 and curator emerita at the Smithsonian in 1994.
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How has Bernice Johnson Reagon influenced American music and history?
Bernice Johnson Reagon is an African American musician and historian whose work ranges from African spirituals to militant civil rights anthems.
Reagon's career began with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Freedom Singers and evolved into the founding of the a cappella group Sweet Honey In The Rock in 1973, known for addressing political and personal issues through a unique blend of musical genres.
As a cultural historian at the Smithsonian, she established the Program in Black American Culture and produced significant works like Voices of the Civil Rights Movement: Black American Freedom Songs, 1960–66 and the Wade in the Water series, preserving African American sacred song and worship traditions.
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Bernice Johnson Reagon (born October 4, 1942, Albany, Georgia, U.S.) is an African American musician and historian whose work ranged from African spirituals to militant civil rights anthems.
Reagon grew up surrounded by the sacred music of her father’s Baptist church. In 1959 she entered Albany State College, where she studied music and first became involved in political activities. In 1961, with members of the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), she was arrested during a protest march and was suspended from school. The following year she returned to her music studies at Spelman College in Atlanta, but she left the same year to join the SNCC Freedom Singers. The group sang at political meetings and jails and also appeared at the 1963 March on Washington. In 1964 she left the Freedom Singers to bear her daughter, Toshi, who later became an accomplished musician in her own right. Her son, Kwan Tauna, was born in 1965. Reagon’s first of a number of solo albums was released in 1966; her second was recorded in 1967. For the next several years she researched traditional African American songs and stories and organized folk festival tours.
Following this period, Reagon became active in black nationalism. She wrote some of her most militant songs as a member of the Harambee Singers. After completing a degree in non-Western history at Spelman, she moved to Washington, D.C., and became the vocal director of the D.C. Black Repertory Theater. In 1973 she formed the singing group Sweet Honey In The Rock, which consisted variously of four to six women, including Reagon, performing a cappella music, ranging from traditional folk, African chant, field hollers, and Baptist hymns to blues, jazz, and rap music. With their unique sound, the group continued to address political and personal issues, toured widely, and recorded many albums. In 1985 they coordinated the closing cultural festivities for the United Nations Decade for Women Conference in Nairobi, Kenya. Reagon retired from the group in 2004.
During her first years with Sweet Honey In The Rock, Reagon earned a doctorate in history at Howard University (1975). In 1974 she began working at the Smithsonian Institution as a cultural historian in the Division of Performing Arts/African Diaspora Project. In 1983 she was promoted to curator at the National Museum of American History, where she had established the Smithsonian’s Program in Black American Culture in 1977. Her projects there included a three-record collection called Voices of the Civil Rights Movement: Black American Freedom Songs, 1960–66 and the Wade in the Water series, a long-term project focusing on the history of African American sacred song and worship traditions. In 1989 Reagon received a MacArthur Foundation award. She was appointed distinguished professor of history at American University in 1993, and the following year she became curator emerita at the Smithsonian; in 2003 she retired as professor emeritus at American University. Reagon was involved in a variety of capacities in several award-winning television productions, including the Eyes on the Prize series and the Africans in America series, and she compiled many collections of compact discs associated with her numerous research projects.