Cultural Declaration: Southern Soul Music Officially Recognized as Freedmen Heritage

The Freedmen Reparations Fund Trust has issued an official cultural declaration recognizing Southern Soul Music as a protected cultural tradition of Verified Freedmen.

Born out of the deep Southern experience — from juke joints and church houses to trail rides and front porches — Southern Soul Music has always been more than entertainment. It is a musical expression of our people’s struggle, survival, and Southern joy. It carries the emotional weight of Freedmen life, often touching on love, pain, freedom, and working-class dignity.

This declaration affirms that Southern Soul belongs to us. It is not a genre to be co-opted, diluted, or stripped of its origins. From legends to contemporary artists, this music has given voice to a community that survived generations of dispossession — and still sings.

As of now, Southern Soul Music is officially recorded in the Freedmen Economic Locator and culturally safeguarded under the Freedmen Reparations Fund Trust. It will be protected from appropriation and mislabeling, ensuring that its lineage is respected and its value retained within Freedmen communities.

Let the record show: Southern Soul is Freedmen music.

Verified. Protected. Ours.

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Read the full declaration here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1C65GsPtLsmv2KYHT2aWXh177tPf1Y3dU/view?usp=drivesdk