I’m So Glad: Kansas City & the Roots of Black Gospel Music

Watch a documentary about the origins of African American Gospel Music, its roots in the area, & its influence on Jazz, Ragtime & Blues in the U.S. & abroad. Documentary showing will be followed by a Q & A with producers Paul Wenske, Chris Wenske and Nancy Meis.

Learn about the African American history of the area, including that of Western University, the first African American College West of the Mississippi River, which was located in Quindaro, KCK, until the mid 1940s.

This is a wonderful documentary on how gospel music originating in Kansas City had its roots in the Freedom Seekers and Exodusters and their descendants who found freedom in Quindaro, KS (a major hub of the underground railroad). Many of these descendants attended the Music Department of Western University, the first African American College west of the Mississippi River. These individuals spread the unique sound and rhythm of KC gospel music throughout the U.S. and Europe and influenced other forms of music, such as ragtime, blues and jazz music.

Learn more about the film https://www.imsogladproject.com/