Sweet Honey in the Rock founder Bernice Johnson Reagon, one of the most stirring and soulful voices of the civil rights movement, has died. The daughter of a Baptist preacher in Albany, Ga., was an original member of the Freedom Singers, a co-ed vocal quartet that provided anthems of defiance for civil rights protesters. Reagon grew up in a church with no piano, which is where she honed her remarkable skills to perform using her voice, hands and body as instruments.
The Freedom Singers were connected to the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and traveled across the country to sing for protesters confronting the police or being sent to jail in the 1960s. In 1973, Reagon founded the iconic group Sweet Honey in the Rock, a collective of Black women singers, who fused Black spiritual stylings, folk and field songs from prior generations as enslaved people. The name of the group was inspired by a gospel song based on a Bible verse about the lord’s promise of blessings to his followers. Honey in the Rock” takes its title from Psalm 81:16, which says, “But I would feed you with the finest wheat. I would satisfy you with wild honey from the rock.”
Reagon originally attended Albany State University, but was expelled for activism. She went on to complete her degree at Spelman College in Atlanta, Ga. A true multi-hyphenate, Reagon earned a doctorate in American history from Howard University in 1975 and directed the Black American Culture Program at the Smithsonian. There, she curated a collection of blues, gospel and spiritual music. Reagon was a professor of history at American University from 1993 to 2003. The ethnomusicologist produced and hosted a 26-part series, “Wade in the Water: African American Sacred Music Traditions” (1994), a National Public Radio series on Black church music. The show won a Peabody Award in 1995.
A national treasure, Sweet Honey in the Rock has been nominated for three Grammy awards, winning the award in 1988 for their participation in the multi-artist record Folkways: A Vision Shared – A Tribute to Woody Guthrie and Leadbelly. They have also been nominated for multiple Grammys for their children’s albums, including Experience… 101 in 2008 and Still the Same Me in 2000
Reagon’s passing was announced by her daughter, musician and singer Toshi Reagon. In addition to Toshi, Reagon is survived by her son, Kwan, life partner, Adisa Douglas, siblings Jordan Warren Johnson, Deloris Johnson Spears, Adetokunbo Tosu Tosasolim and Mamie Johnson Rush, and a granddaughter. No cause of death was reported. Bernice Johnson Reagon was 81.
This post was written by Nsenga K. Burton, Ph.D., founder & editor-in-chief of The Burton Wire. Follow Nsenga on social media @Ntellectual.
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