During the World War II era, Jazz was the popular music of the time in the United States. However, this music did not stem from popular culture, but rather from the subculture of African Americans. Born out of the era of Jim Crow, Jazz was used as a form of escapism. However, during this time Black Jazz musicians started to shift toward a new form of Jazz known as “Bop.” The hard hitting sounds of Bop were not meant to be danced to. Instead the sounds of Bop reflected the anger and disillusionment of the African American community trying to succeed economically during the war. As the war came to an end Rhythm and Blues as well as Soul would emerge and blend to become the soundtrack to the Civil Rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s. Black musicians would push a sound and image that reflected the desires of many of the Africans Americans struggling for liberation. I will argue that following World War II Black popular music shifted to reflect the changing political climates of the African American community.