Celebration honors the cultural impact of black musicians throughout history
iHeartMedia is celebrating Black Music Month with exclusive audio vignettes from some of today’s top Urban artists. The celebration will honor the incredible achievements of black musicians and their influential contribution to the world of music. iHeartMedia will air special audio messages from artists including H.E.R, Flipp Dinero and Russ and many more as they celebrate the impact and achievements of black musicians who have influenced their lives, such as Beyonce, Dr. Dre, Jay Z, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, Lauryn Hill, Ludacris, Michael Jackson, Notorious B.I.G., Prince, Tupac and many more.
As black music continues to create powerful personal connections and brings communities together, iHeartMedia will also provide listeners with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to win a virtual meet and greet with one today’s biggest Urban artists, including Trey Songz for Urban AC. Listen to iHeartMedia’s Urban Contemporary or Urban AC stations all month long for a chance to win, or via the iHeartRadio App.
“With community and personal connection being more important now than ever before, we’re honored to be able to celebrate the significant impact that black music has had on all of us,” states Doc Wynter, Executive Vice President of Urban/Hip-Hop Programming Strategy for iHeartMedia. “We’re thrilled to be able to bring our listeners’ favorite artists together to support one another with inspiring messages from artists like H.E.R. who will pay tribute to the legendary Lauryn Hill, and Russ who will celebrate the important contributions that his fellow Atlanta native, Ludacris has made on black music.”
The news comes following civil unrest throughout the country after the Memorial Day death of 46-year-old, George Floyd, a black man from Minneapolis, who died at the hands of a white police officer named Derek Chauvin. After a video was released showing Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck for more than eight minutes as the man cried he couldn’t breath during protesting, has been charged with third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter Floyd was pronounced dead at an area hospital as short time later.
On Tuesday, the music industry participated in Black Out Tuesday, called #TheShowMustBePaused, in response to the murders of Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmed Arbery and countless other black citizens at the hands of police. Most labels and Recording Rights Organizations, as well as artists, took the day off of work and social media solidarity.
#TheShowMustBePaused is an initiative created by Jamila Thomas, a senior director of marketing at Atlantic Records, and Brianna Agyemang, a senior artist campaign manager at Platoon — who are both black — in observance of the long-standing racism and inequality that exists from the boardroom to the boulevard.
