From the power of Black spirituals and gospels that originated in Africa to the Harlem Cultural Festival of the 1960s, music is a fundamental element of Black history. That’s why this February, as part of our ongoing Black History is Happening Now initiative, Spotify created a line of limited-edition clothing and accessories inspired by contemporary music merch. The collection specifically celebrates the way Black creators have shifted the culture and shaped the music we know and love.
Spotify collaborated with Black music historian and researcher Naima Cochrane and the Smithsonian Museum of African American History and Culture’s Curator of Music and Performing Arts, Dr. Dwandalyn R. Reece, to identify six moments and figures in Black music history. These include the Harlem Cultural Festival, the Chitlin Circuit Black where musicians could play during the Jim Crow era, modern Afro-Latinx rap and hip-hop, and specific artists such as disco queen Sylvester and rock pioneer Rosetta Tharpe. Each of these moments is associated with both a Spotify-curated playlist and a piece of clothing. Fans can use their phones to scan the Spotify code on the merch and get taken straight to the music, available on the Black History is Happening Now Hub through February 28 2019.