The Color Purple

The music in the film The Color Purple was just as inspiring as the story itself. Listening to the music, one can almost hear the emotions of the characters. The music almost pushes the plot along, always giving us a little taste of what is going to happen next.
The music in the Color Purple was very inspired by the songs of the time. Jazz was a major influence, as we saw when Shug Avery was singing or when playing from a record in a room. Popular holiday music was also played during the film at the correct times in the film.
The use of ethnic tribal music was used and tied into Celie read her sisters letters. This music, which was originally from Africa where Nettie was, had the same beat or tempo as the sounds around Celie. The music in this film could be heard from beginning to end and both diagetic and non diagetic.