The Musical Activism of Sweet Honey in the Rock

Sweet Honey in The Rock is an African-American women’s a capella group that is almost 50 years old. While the ensemble has a repertoire that includes Negro spirituals, blues, and gospel songs, it also addresses international social issues, women’s oppression, social justice (domestic and abroad), and environmental justice. Early on, the group contributed their 5- and 6-part harmony to the American civil rights movement. Since then, their continually evolving membership has become an institution of harmonic social activism to diverse audiences in major and mid-sized cities of the US and around the world.This presentation describes and discusses contributions of Sweet Honey in the Rock to (1) historical social activism, (2) the legacy of (women’s) a capella, and (3) the timelessness of their discography as applied to current social justice issues. Participants are challenged to discover the intersectionality of the music with their respective academic disciplines and interests.