Did You Know!

1. Did you know that gospel means "good news"
2. Did you know when slaves came from Africa to America they brought religious beliefs and music styles with them
3. Did you know that many slaves had to convert over to Christianity
4. Did you know that slaves beliefs and christian beliefs were put together in song called Negro Spirituals
5. Did you know slaves created a way to express their feelings and religious beliefs in a way that was all their own
6. Did you know spirituals spoke of their love of God, hope of heaven, desire for freedom, disdain for slavery, and secret plans for escaping
7. Did you know that when slaves left the south to the north their migration and new habitat started gospel music.
8. Did you know Africans attended their master's worship services
9. Did you know that in those worship services slaves were monitored and they were served as a reinforcement of the slavery indoctrination
10. Did you know the worship music (hymns) of the white masters became the backdrop for the music the enslaved Africans would use at their eventual worship meetings.
11. Did you know that slaves had campground meetings (they had church)
12. Did you know in the tradition of the black church, call and response in singing and in speaking has been and continues to be a foundation on which the gospel is delivered.
13. Did you know that no longer bound to the walls of the American church, gospel music captures the creative and spiritual imaginations of increasing numbers of international audiences.