This song is admissible, having no racist lyrics or messaging. However, it presents a significant concern for predominantly White ensembles, because it is from The Wiz, a 1974 musical that is a culturally specific reinterpretation, rooted in Black culture and experience of the early seventies. It is not simply “an R&B interpretation” or “modern retelling” of The Wizard of Oz, as some describe it.
Gerick D. Kennedy writes in the LA TImes in 2018 that “The Wiz distills Baum’s tale through a Black lens” and “is foremost a story of racial liberation,” noting that "Ease on Down the Road feels more like a rallying cry culled from the tradition of Negro spirituals." Kennedy further adds:
For a generation of Black Americans, this was the first time they saw people who spoke, sung and moved the way they did in a Broadway production and, later, a big-screen musical, and it has become a kind of rite of passage for the Black community. … The Wiz weaved together gospel, blues, soul and R&B — genres that are unequivocally Black creations — and were narratives of the Black experience, an especially bold move given Hollywood’s monochromatic palette.
Both the stage and film productions of “The Wiz” have a common theme: the perseverance of the Black American dream despite mighty odds. But where the original stage production uses Dorothy’s journey home from the Land of Oz to explore slavery, emancipation, the great migration and faith, the film updates it to a post-Civil Rights era.
This apology from a New Zealand theater company that put on a stage production of the musical, crystallizes the issues:
In 2006, Phamaly produced a multicultural, multiracial version of The Wiz that did not honor the deep traditions and heritage of the musical.
As a retelling of L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, The Wiz was created as a narrative of the Black experience, from slavery to liberation, being rooted in Black cultural aesthetic, African traditions, and Afro-futurism. Through Black and African dance and music genres like jazz, R&B, soul, spirituals, and Motown, it was and continues to be a celebration of the Black and African diaspora identity.
Phamaly acknowledges that this heritage was not upheld in its 2006 production. No matter how well-intentioned the company’s aims at the time, Phamaly’s multicultural approach de-centered the aforementioned Black and African traditions of the musical and thereby reinforced systemic issues of appropriation and erasure of Black identity and experience.
For more on Cultural Appropriation, please watch this video. & see this doc.
The issues presented in a stage production also apply to performing selected songs. When performed by non-Black groups, the message and meaning of the songs are necessarily altered from one of Black liberation and discovery, to more personal or generalized “freedom” and “joy.” Even if the message is applied to the struggles of other marginalized groups, it is a co-opting of the very specific message of these songs, and so for some, this will come across as culturally arrogant, disrespectful, and appropriative, and will put off some audience and ensemble members.
Please see the Song History section below for additional details on the Black cultural aspects of The Wiz.
Should an ensemble choose this song, they should ensure they do not attempt to imitate costuming or choreography from The Wiz. .
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES:
Cultural appropriation or a unique opportunity for LHS theater students?
Quotes Tania Richard, “With respect I am an actress, writer, and director. An all-White production of “The Wiz” […] is cultural appropriation and teaches White children that they are entitled to everything regardless of who it is for and who it represents. The students could have experienced the musicals by listening to them, not being in them.” | Subsequent piece written by Richard about this issue.
https://www.weringlikebells.com/
It can be deeply offensive to people who feel connected to oppressed persons when a song that emerges from an oppressed group is sung by privileged people, who are connected to a dominating culture, and especially if the song had an intended or limited purpose that is not being honored.
Traveling beyond the Yellow Brick Road: “The Wiz” and its lasting impact on Black culture – The Mirror
Recounts the history of The Wiz while celebrating the 2024 Broadway revival.
"Ease on Down the Road": Black Routes and the Soul of The Wiz
Discusses the history and cultural connections of The Wiz and its reception.
(song is also rated Yes: Lyrics)
The original lyrics of this song contain Black vernacular. In determining admissibility, we have noted that the dialect contained in this song is quite different from the dialect contained in other songs that have been deemed inadmissible on these grounds. The purpose of the dialect in this song (and Show Boat, generally)—while having been criticized by some as being stereotypical—is not to demean or mock, as is the case with minstrel songs and c**n songs. HOWEVER:
It is required that performers use non-vernacular lyrics, as performed by the biracial character, Julie, and as likely contained in barbershop arrangements.
Before choosing this song, all performers should understand the criticisms of the song and the originating show (see Notes on Show Boat) and carefully deliberate as to whether or not the song is appropriate for their performing group.
(song is also rated Yes: Lyrics)
This song is admissible only with the required omission of the lyrics identified at the bottom of this Reviewers’ Note. However, No Bad News presents a significant concern for predominantly White ensembles, because it is from The Wiz, a 1974 musical that is a culturally specific reinterpretation, rooted in Black culture and experience of the early seventies. It is not simply “an R&B interpretation” or “modern retelling” of The Wizard of Oz, as some describe it.
Gerick D. Kennedy writes in the LA TImes in 2018 that “The Wiz distills Baum’s tale through a Black lens” and “is foremost a story of racial liberation,” noting that "Ease on Down the Road feels more like a rallying cry culled from the tradition of Negro spirituals." Kennedy further adds:
For a generation of Black Americans, this was the first time they saw people who spoke, sung and moved the way they did in a Broadway production and, later, a big-screen musical, and it has become a kind of rite of passage for the Black community. … The Wiz weaved together gospel, blues, soul and R&B — genres that are unequivocally black creations — and were narratives of the Black experience, an especially bold move given Hollywood’s monochromatic palette.
Both the stage and film productions of “The Wiz” have a common theme: the perseverance of the Black American dream despite mighty odds. But where the original stage production uses Dorothy’s journey home from the Land of Oz to explore slavery, emancipation, the great migration and faith, the film updates it to a post-Civil Rights era.
Please see the Song History section below for additional details on the Black cultural aspects of The Wiz.
This apology from a New Zealand theater company that put on a stage production of the musical, crystallizes the issues:
In 2006, Phamaly produced a multicultural, multiracial version of The Wiz that did not honor the deep traditions and heritage of the musical.
As a retelling of L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, The Wiz was created as a narrative of the Black experience, from slavery to liberation, being rooted in Black cultural aesthetic, African traditions, and Afro-futurism. Through Black and African dance and music genres like jazz, R&B, soul, spirituals, and Motown, it was and continues to be a celebration of the Black and African diaspora identity.
Phamaly acknowledges that this heritage was not upheld in its 2006 production. No matter how well-intentioned the company’s aims at the time, Phamaly’s multicultural approach de-centered the aforementioned Black and African traditions of the musical and thereby reinforced systemic issues of appropriation and erasure of Black identity and experience.
For more on Cultural Appropriation, please watch this video. & see this doc.
The issues presented in a stage production also apply to performing selected songs. When performed by non-Black groups, the message and meaning of the songs are necessarily altered from one of Black liberation and discovery, to more personal or generalized “freedom” and “joy.” Even if the message is applied to the struggles of other marginalized groups, it is a co-opting of the very specific message of these songs, and so this will come across as culturally arrogant, disrespectful, and appropriative, and will put off some audience and ensemble members.
No Bad News in particular, presents an added complication for predominantly White ensembles in that it is performed by Evillene, the Wicked Witch of the West, singing to her enslaved minions (the Winkies). In a 1975 NY Times article focused on how the musical is received differently by Black vs White audiences, Bryant Rollins describes Evillene as: “The obvious representative of slavery … an evil, scowling demon who is pulled onto the stage by chanting slaves driven by an overseer with a whip and bullhorn. Since the sixties, the bullhorn has symbolized police repression in Black communities from Watts to Newark.”
Should an ensemble choose this song, they should ensure they do not attempt to imitate costuming or choreography from The Wiz and must omit the following lyrics.
YES: LYRICS REQUIREMENT
It's important to consider context and to respect the boundaries of cultural expression, especially when it comes to language that has strong ties to identity. Ensembles should be mindful and aware of how using AAE features might be perceived in different settings. Non-Black performers must remove "chile" from the lyrics to be respectful of cultural and linguistic diversity.
'Cause I'll make you an offer, child / That you cannot refuse.
“Child” used in this manner is African American English (AAE) (usually pronounced chile, as in the videos in the Earliest / Notable Performances section) and should not be appropriated by non-Black singers. Please see AAE & Cultural Appropriation in Music & Society.
The song also contains double negatives intended to be AAE (“don’t nobody give me no bad news”). Yet double negatives are not exclusive to AAE (e.g, appear in Appalachian English). And given its use in the title and as a refrain throughout the song, the phrase is integral to the song’s linguistic style and so should not be changed. Another issue is that altering it might come across as “correcting grammar.” However, non-Black performers should take care not to use a blaccent (video) or caricature African Americans in other ways, such as with exaggerated moves, mannerisms, or costuming.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES:
Cultural appropriation or a unique opportunity for LHS theater students?
Quotes Tania Richard, “With respect I am an actress, writer, and director. An all-White production of “The Wiz” […] is cultural appropriation and teaches White children that they are entitled to everything regardless of who it is for and who it represents. The students could have experienced the musicals by listening to them, not being in them.” | Subsequent piece written by Richard about this issue.
https://www.weringlikebells.com/
It can be deeply offensive to people who feel connected to oppressed persons when a song that emerges from an oppressed group is sung by privileged people, who are connected to a dominating culture, and especially if the song had an intended or limited purpose that is not being honored.
Traveling beyond the Yellow Brick Road: “The Wiz” and its lasting impact on black culture – The Mirror
Recounts the history of The Wiz while celebrating the 2024 Broadway revival.
"Ease on Down the Road": Black Routes and the Soul of The Wiz
Discusses the history and cultural connections of The Wiz and its reception.
Reevaluation: Jan 27, 2025: change from YES to YES: Caution
This song remains admissible, having no racist lyrics or messaging. However, it presents a significant concern for predominantly White ensembles, because it is from The Wiz, a 1974 musical that is a culturally specific reinterpretation, rooted in Black culture and experience of the early seventies. It is not simply “an R&B interpretation” or “modern retelling” of The Wizard of Oz, as some describe it.
Gerick D. Kennedy writes in the LA TImes in 2018 that “The Wiz distills Baum’s tale through a Black lens” and “is foremost a story of racial liberation,” noting that "Ease on Down the Road feels more like a rallying cry culled from the tradition of Negro spirituals." Kennedy further adds:
For a generation of Black Americans, this was the first time they saw people who spoke, sung and moved the way they did in a Broadway production and, later, a big-screen musical, and it has become a kind of rite of passage for the Black community. … The Wiz weaved together gospel, blues, soul and R&B — genres that are unequivocally black creations — and were narratives of the Black experience, an especially bold move given Hollywood’s monochromatic palette.
Both the stage and film productions of “The Wiz” have a common theme: the perseverance of the Black American dream despite mighty odds. But where the original stage production uses Dorothy’s journey home from the Land of Oz to explore slavery, emancipation, the great migration and faith, the film updates it to a post-Civil Rights era.
Please see the Song History section below for additional details on the Black cultural aspects of The Wiz.
This apology from a New Zealand theater company that put on a stage production of the musical, crystallizes the issues:
In 2006, Phamaly produced a multicultural, multiracial version of The Wiz that did not honor the deep traditions and heritage of the musical.
As a retelling of L. Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz”, The Wiz was created as a narrative of the Black experience, from slavery to liberation, being rooted in Black cultural aesthetic, African traditions, and Afro-futurism. Through Black and African dance and music genres like jazz, R&B, soul, spirituals, and Motown, it was and continues to be a celebration of the Black and African diaspora identity.
Phamaly acknowledges that this heritage was not upheld in its 2006 production. No matter how well-intentioned the company’s aims at the time, Phamaly’s multicultural approach de-centered the aforementioned Black and African traditions of the musical and thereby reinforced systemic issues of appropriation and erasure of Black identity and experience.
For more on Cultural Appropriation, please watch this video. & see this doc.
The issues presented in a stage production also apply to performing selected songs. When performed by non-Black groups, the message and meaning of the songs are necessarily altered from one of Black liberation and discovery, to more personal or generalized “freedom” and “joy.” Even if the message is applied to the struggles of other marginalized groups, it is a co-opting of the very specific message of these songs, and so for some, this will come across as culturally arrogant, disrespectful, and appropriative, and will put off some audience and ensemble members.
Should an ensemble choose this song, they should ensure they do not attempt to imitate costuming or choreography from The Wiz.
Also note, that Ease on Down the Road contains African American English (AAE) in its “don’t you carry nothing that might be a load” phrase. However, double negatives are not exclusive to AAE (e.g, appear in Appalachian English) and its use in a repeated refrain throughout the song is integral to the song’s linguistic style and so should not be changed. Another issue is that altering it might come across as “correcting grammar.” However, non-Black performers should take care not to use a blaccent (video) or caricature African Americans in other ways, such as with exaggerated moves, mannerisms, or costuming.
ADDITIONAL REFERENCES:
Cultural appropriation or a unique opportunity for LHS theater students?
Quotes Tania Richard, “With respect I am an actress, writer, and director. An all-White production of “The Wiz” […] is cultural appropriation and teaches White children that they are entitled to everything regardless of who it is for and who it represents. The students could have experienced the musicals by listening to them, not being in them.” | Subsequent piece written by Richard about this issue.
https://www.weringlikebells.com/
It can be deeply offensive to people who feel connected to oppressed persons when a song that emerges from an oppressed group is sung by privileged people, who are connected to a dominating culture, and especially if the song had an intended or limited purpose that is not being honored.
Traveling beyond the Yellow Brick Road: “The Wiz” and its lasting impact on black culture – The Mirror
Recounts the history of The Wiz while celebrating the 2024 Broadway revival.
"Ease on Down the Road": Black Routes and the Soul of The Wiz
Discusses the history and cultural connections of The Wiz and its reception.
(song is also rated Yes: Lyrics)
SAT SUBCOMMITTEE NOTES
Reevalution: May 14, 2021: change from NO to YES: Caution
I Got Plenty o’ Nuttin’ was initially deemed inadmissible due to the Black vernacular contained in the original lyrics. However, it was noted that the dialect contained in this song is quite different from the dialect contained in other songs that have been deemed inadmissible on these grounds. The purpose of the dialect in Porgy and Bess—while having been criticized by some as being stereotypical—is not to demean or mock in the same way as minstrel songs and c**n songs. We therefore agreed that this song assessment should be changed to ADMISSIBLE WITH THE FOLLOWING CAUTIONS:
It is required that performers use more modernized and updated lyrics (without vernacular) such as that contained in the Jamison arrangement.
IMPORTANT: Before choosing this song, all performers should understand the criticisms of the song and the opera it came from (see notes on Porgy and Bess) and come to their own decision as to whether or not the song is appropriate for their performing group.
This song is admissible, having no problematic lyrics or history. However, it contains made-up syllables intended to mimic Hasidic chanting (nigun). To avoid the appearance of satire or caricature, ensembles should ensure they do not attempt to emulate nigunim, unless they have Jewish members capable of authentic delivery. Instead, it is recommended to substitute "nay, nay" as in VoicePlay's version.
(song is also rated YES: Lyrics)
It Ain’t Necessarily So is deemed admissible despite the Black vernacular contained in the original lyrics. This is because the dialect contained in this song is quite different from the dialect contained in other songs that have been deemed inadmissible on these grounds. The purpose of the dialect in Porgy and Bess—while having been criticized by some as being stereotypical—is not to demean or mock in the same way as minstrel and c**n songs.
This song is therefore ADMISSIBLE WITH THE FOLLOWING CAUTIONS:
It is required that performers use more modernized and updated lyrics (without the original vernacular).
Use of “ain’t” is not a concern: We reached out to Jennifer K. N. Heinmiller Executive Editor of the Oxford Dictionary of African American English (to be released in 2025) regarding use of double-negatives and “ain’t.” She replied that “The Oxford English Dictionary and other scholarly publications have documented double negative construction from pre-1600 and pre-1700, respectively, in England. Both are heavily associated with southern varieties of American English and African American English (AAE), but neither is exclusively AAE.“
Before choosing this song, all performers should understand the criticisms of the song and the opera it came from (see notes on Porgy and Bess) and carefully deliberate as to whether or not the song is appropriate for their performing group.
This song is admissible with two conditions.
The “honey child” lyrics (if present), must have the “child” pronounced with a hard “d” and not “honey chile,” which is considered African American English (AAE).
The spoken part of the Ink Spots portion of the lyrics (if present) should not be done with an accent or in an exaggerated manner as in the original recording by The Modernaires. (Here is the same spot in the Ink Spots original song recording.) While the song (and Modernaires’ performance) is meant to be a parody of the current generation’s popular artists, such a lampoon would not be appropriate for a Sweet Adelines ensemble rendition.
Ensembles performing this American folksong must carefully review and discuss this note and research document to understand the song’s origins and significance and be sensitive to cultural appropriation concerns.
Kumbaya originated in the Southeastern United States and then traveled all over the world. The earliest known recording is a 1927 Gullah version. While we can’t be fully confident that the song originated with the Gullah Geechee people (descendants of Africans who were enslaved on the Atlantic coast of the US), rather than among African Americans in the southeast more broadly, Gullah versions led to its spread and popularity. In fact, it is possible that Kumbaya originated among the enslaved, and certainly the song provided solace during the horrors of Jim Crow. Thus, it should be accorded the same respect as any Negro Spiritual—the central medium by which the enslaved expressed the suffering of an inhuman existence. Please see the Negro Spirituals document for details.
It is especially important to be cognizant of this history in the face of the song’s meaning being twisted and desecrated when it was appropriated by White people.* Rather than a soulful cry for divine intervention on behalf of an oppressed people and strength in the face of adversity during civil rights protests, the song was reduced to a children’s campfire song and snarky political shorthand mocking idealism and ridiculing the idea of compromise. In a 2023 piece in Financial Times Limited, Nicole Douglas-Morris notes:
Writing in 2010 for The New York Times, author and journalist Samuel G Freedman noted that “Kumbaya” is “deeply rooted in a black Christianity’s vision of a God who intercedes to deliver both solace and justice” and that “the people who were ‘crying, my Lord’ were blacks suffering under the Jim Crow regime.” The song’s powerful meaning became diluted and “supplanted by a campfire paean to brotherhood.”
Over the past few decades, Kumbaya has become polluted and associated with benign hippies enacting no real social change. The song’s evolution and story is interlaced with changing political attitudes, cultural appropriation and, in the end, a sort of sacrilege which has erased its original spiritual message.
Freedman further writes that “Only within black church circles can one, to this day, still hear Come By Here with the profundity [of that 1927 recording]” and quotes professor of folklore, Glenn Hinson: “Yet again, a product of African-American spirituality has been turned into a term of joking and derision. It’s a distortion, and it’s a sad reversal.”
In celebrating the Gulla Geechee community finally gaining recognition for Kumbaya’s origins, and noting the similarity of Kumbaya’s lyrics to Negro Spirituals’ cries for help and hope for freedom and better days, Anne C. Bailey writes in a 2018 blog post:
Those cries and that hope are heard in the song Kumbaya which has finally gotten its due. The fact that many things in African American culture quietly become mainstream without recognition of their origin makes this long overdue recognition all the more significant.
And in her blog on Decolonizing the Music Room, Pamela Bailey concludes:
Kumbaya is a song from the culture of American-born people of African descent that I want everyone to know and sing, just not devoid of the knowledge of the history that has shaped its lyrics. When we sing Kumbaya and other spirituals with respect for the culture that created it, then, and only then, can we have a true exchange of culture rather than appropriating it.
*Note: A White evangelist even claimed copyright of the song in 1939, an authorship attribution that was debunked only just a few years ago by folklorist Stephen Winick. Additional details and references are provided in the research below.
This song was escalated to the Song Assessment Tool Subcommittee for discussion.
(song is also rated Yes: Lyrics)
Although the lyrics of Summertime use Black vernacular, in this instance the use of the word "Mammy" is not meant to portray a southern enslaved female, but a mother. In regards to the Black vernacular and determining admissibility, we have noted that the dialect contained in this song is quite different from that contained in other songs that have been deemed inadmissible on these grounds. The purpose of the dialect in this song (and Porgy and Bess, generally)—while having been criticized by some as being stereotypical—is not to demean or mock, as is the case with minstrel songs and c**n songs. The song is therefore admissible, with the following cautions:
It is required that performers use more modernized updated lyrics (WITHOUT the vernacular; e.g. yo’ instead of your) and WITHOUT use of the word “mammy.”
IMPORTANT: Before choosing this song, all performers should understand the criticisms of the song and the opera it came from (see notes on Porgy and Bess) and come to their own decision as to whether or not the song is appropriate for their performing group.
ALSO NOTE: Some musicologists consider Summertime to be an adaptation (some might say appropriation) of the Negro Spiritual Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child (unmistakable in Mehalia Jackson’s recording of the two songs together).
And indeed, Gershwin used a chord sequence typical of spiritual songs. (reference). Thus, this isn't just a beautiful lullaby. The lyric line: "One of these mornings you're going to rise up singing. Then you'll spread your wings, and you'll take to the sky," evokes the enslaved, singing about going to Heaven to escape the harsh confines of their lives. Spirituals were not uplifting ditties - they were an escape mechanism for an oppressed people.
(song is also rated Yes: Lyrics)
The song is part of a well-known opera/musical in which the setting was an all-Black community (Gullah Community). Most of the songs were written and performed in the dialect of that community.
For this assessment: Review the ALL the research and cautions provided in the assessment of “It Ain’t Necessarily So”. As reasoned in the Review Note for “It Ain’t Necessarily So,” this song is ADMISSIBLE WITH THE FOLLOWING CAUTIONS AND LYRIC CHANGE
It is required that performers use more modernized and updated lyrics (without the original vernacular).
A change in the arrangement lyrics is required: The updated lyrics for this arrangement do not contain much of the original vernacular but the submitter did not state all the changes as there were more than “sista.”
The updated lyrics also still include the phrase “through Harlem we’ll go struttin.” Given the setting of the opera/musical and the knowledge that the opera was written for an all-Black cast, this phrase with the Harlem reference and the vernacular, “struttin” must be changed also if the intention is to remove from the setting of a Gullah community and the hardships faced there. The song was not merely about “someone” wanted to leave. It was a particular setting, involving people of a particular ethnicity/race/culture, the Gullah community (The meaning of GULLAH is a member of a group of Black people inhabiting the sea islands and coastal districts of South Carolina, Georgia, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Gullah.
Before choosing this song, all performers should understand the criticisms of the song and the opera it came from (see notes on Porgy and Bess) and carefully deliberate as to whether or not the song is appropriate for their performing group.