Scott Joplin and the Meaning of ‘Ragtime’

Composer and pianist Scott Joplin, The King of Ragtime, was born on November 24, 1868. Most people know his music from the 1973 movie "The Sting," which featured his tunes as interpreted by the late pianist Marvin Hamlisch. The film created a resurgence in the popularity of Ragtime music. But do you know how the genre got its name?

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When White Artists Cover Black Music: It Rocks or it Flops

Thirty-one years ago this week, Blondie's "Rapture" became the first rap song to hit the number one spot on the Billboard chart, introducing a whole new audience of white Americans to a provocative musical genre emerging from black artists like Grandmaster Flash, Kurtis Blow and the Sugarhill Gang. A blonde on blonde chick rapping about a man from Mars who eats up cars, bars and guitars? Yes, brave, sexy Debbie Harry and her band of New York / New Wave punk-hipsters put their own spin on a distinctly urban black musical style - and it worked!

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