myCSUSM
AIS 260
AIS 260: Rumble: American Indians and Rock & Roll
(3 units)
The award-winning documentary RUMBLE: The Indians Who Rocked the World tells the story of a profound, essential, and, until now, missing chapter in the history of American music: the Indigenous influence. The film Rumble: The Indians Who Rocked the World explores the Native American influence on popular music through the life stories of artists such as Buffy Sainte-Marie, Jimi Hendrix, Johnny Cash, and others. This course furthers the study, using rock, hip hop, and other music by Native artists to inspire dialog around pressing cultural issues, introduce important moments in U.S./Indian relations, and engage students in the creation of U.S. history that includes Native Americans as vital participants.
This course explores how Native American culture and music influenced “mainstream” American popular music and impacted and influenced Rock and Roll. Students will engage in central questions surrounding human diversity such as race, gender, social equity and how American Indian music has influenced Rock and Roll in the U.S. and Globally. Special attention is given to how Native American music and culture was both legally suppressed and commercially celebrated throughout history.