Origins of rock and roll "Rock and Roll" Harris. These songs were generally classed as "race music" or, from the late 1940s, "rhythm and blues", and were barely known by mainstream white audiences. However, in 1951, Cleveland disc jockey Alan Freed began broadcasting rhythm, blues, and country music for a multi-racial audience. Freed, familiar with the music of earlier decades, used the phrase rock and roll to describe the music he aired over station WJW (850 AM); its use also is credited to Freed's sponsor, record store owner Leo Mintz, who encouraged Freed to play the music on the radio. Originally Freed used the name
Rock 'n' Roll Rumble of Once as part of a "Winner Winner Come For Dinner" promotion during the preliminary nights. A fire alarm during the finals forced the evacuation of the Once Ballroom during Carissa Johnson's set. Johnson went on to win the Rumble. Rock 'n' Roll Rumble The Rock 'n' Roll Rumble (sometimes stylized "Rock & Roll Rumble"; formerly the "WBCN Rock 'n' Roll Rumble"), begun in 1979, is a Greater Boston "battle of the bands" competition sponsored by WZLX and its local music show Boston Emissions. It remains the longest running event of its kind in the US. Its predecessors were the