Bessie Smith was a well-known American blues vocalist during the Jazz Age. She was born on April 15, 1894. She was dubbed the “Empress of the Blues” and was the most successful female blues musician in the 1930s.
She was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989 and is largely regarded as one of the best singers of her generation, as well as a key influence on other blues and jazz musicians.
Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and after her parents died when she was a child, she and her six siblings made ends meet by performing on street corners.
Before moving out on her own, she traveled with a group that included Ma Rainey. Her magnificent Columbia Records recording career began in 1923, but her performing career was cut short when she was 43 years old in a car accident.
Why is Bessie Smith so important?
Yes, Bessie was critical. She was the first African American superstar and the highest-paid African American singer working in music.
Bessie Smith’s music and attitude, while entrenched in a bygone age, are still with us in the twenty-first century.
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