What kind of music is Zydeco?

What kind of music is Zydeco?

Zydeco is a popular accordion-based musical genre – the blues and dance music of Louisiana Creoles, the French-speaking blacks of the prairies of south-central and southwest Louisiana. Contrary to popular belief, it is not Cajun in origin.

What is Cajun music called?

The term "Creole music" is used to describe both the early folk or roots music traditions of French and Metis rural Creoles of South Louisiana and the later more contemporary genre called Zydeco. It was often simply called French music or La La. It was sung in French patois by Creoles.

Is Zydeco black music?

Modern zydeco music is the direct descendent of black Creole music—or “la-la music” as it is often known—and much like its Cajun cousin, was created for the sole purpose of dancing. Musically, it drew heavily on Caribbean and African influences as well as early blues and traditional French melodies.

How did Cajun music start?

As Barry Ancelet explains in his monograph Cajun Music: Its Origins and Development, the Acadians who came to Louisiana beginning in 1764 after their expulsion from Acadie (Nova Scotia ) in 1755 brought with them music that had its origins in France but that had already been changed by experiences in the New World …