“Keep what you’ve got till you get what you need” were the words voiced by Chuck Brown, the Godfather of Go-go music. Brown is describing a genre built out of community. He is bringing the spirit of Go-go music, a genre built from the African American community in Washington, DC, to life.
Go-go began in the early 1970s in the neighborhoods of DC as a subgenre of funk music and remains present today as a creative reflection of Black culture, history, and pride. The name “Go-go” largely comes from its performance-based nature; its rhythm was known to keep people “going and going” while dancing during shows. This rhythm can be felt in Go-go’s distinctive “pocket beat,” that personifies the distinctive, infectious groove in which complex forms of improvisation and call-and-response chants are built upon.
Go-go puts heavy emphasis upon rhythm, percussion, and interactions between the crowd and audience. Performances tend to include different forms of call and response chants which blur typical barriers between the crowd and performer, instead emphasizing a communal celebration of music and culture. This kind of performance was largely influenced by guitarist and frontman Chuck Brown and his band, The Soul Searchers, who were originally from North Carolina. Brown was known to blend different kinds of funk rhythms with Latin percussion, as heard in famous songs like “Bustin’ Loose” (1978).
However, Brown was far from alone in the development of this unique genre. There were a series of other notable groups like the Young Senators, Trouble Funk, and Rare Essence who helped form this distinctive kind of communal performance. The rise of go-go acted as an extension of the large Black community in DC during the 1970s, when African Americans made up about 70% of DC’s residents–a number that has since decreased as a result of gentrification. This period coined DC the nickname “Chocolate City,” named after Parliament Funkadelic’s 1975 album which was representative of Black power and pride within DC.
This genre has continued to evolve, in the 90s merging with hip hop to create a generally faster rhythm and different sound. Entering the 2000s, characteristics of go-go like the pocket beat have continued to show influence and merge with elements of R&B in bands like Be’la Dona and Vybe Band.
Throughout generations, go-go has acted as a communal force for promoting political expression and resistance in the U.S. During the 1980s, Chuck Brown collaborated with a number of other go-go artists to take a stand against gun violence in “DC Don’t Stand for Dodge City,” serving as a voice for various political concerns.
Today, go-go remains an ever-evolving genre representative of the African American community and experience within the DMV. Still existing largely in live performances, the genre works to preserve DC’s cultural identity in a period of growing change. •