By Sophia Christensen
I’m sure you enjoy playing Cardi B and Pop Smoke on full blast but let’s steer away from that for a second here. Allow me to introduce you to the phenomenal guitarist, singer and songwriter, Jimi Hendrix. Since the 1960s, he has been blowing the world away with his astounding electric guitar skills and changing the rock world completely.
With encouragement from his father, Jimi Hendrix turned to music at only 16. He instantly fell in love with music, especially rock, viewing it as an escape from his difficult childhood. Hendrix’s mom passed when he was 16 years old and with his dad caught up in the army, he was forced to bounce back and forth between his relatives’ and acquaintances’ houses. The only constant joy in his life was music.
He taught himself how to rock out on the electric guitar, composing music of all different genres: rock, blues, and jazz. Uniquely, he composed music by experimenting with the endless amount of musical possibilities on his electric guitar. Dropping out of highschool in 1959, Hendrix began his music career with his first band, The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Eventually, he won many rock music awards and was even inducted in the US Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the UK Music Hall of Fame. His breathtaking music also allowed him to make the top ten list of greatest guitarists in the whole world.
Jimi Hendrix’s music had a huge impact on music development throughout the years, especially on rock music. He improved styles used to play the guitar by combining feedback, controlled distortion, and fuzz. Ultimately, Hendrix inspired many other musicians to try the same “out of the box” ideas. Hendrix also introduced the idea of singing and playing the lead at the same time, changing the rock band standard where one member would play the lead and another sings.
Jimi Hendrix reshaped the music world in the best possible way. Therefore, I encourage you to step away from mainstream music for a moment and appreciate the legend himself, Jimi Hendrix.