Billie Holiday originally born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915, in Philadelphia,Pennsylvania. She spent much of her childhood in Baltimore, Maryland. Her mother who was only a teenager when she had her, name was Sadie. Her father is commonly said to be Clarence Holiday, who in the end became a successful jazz musician who played with people like Fletcher Henderson. Sadly he wasn’t around that much while Holiday was growing up. Sadie wound up marrying Philip Gough in 1920. However it did not last, which left Holiday and her mother struggling alone on their own. Holiday eventually began skipping school, and she and her mother went to court over Holiday's attendance problems. After which she was sent to the “House of Good” Shepherd, a facility for troubled African American girls, in January 1925. She was only 9 years old then and was one of youngest girls there. She was eventually put back into her mother's care in August of that year. “According to Donald Clarke's biography, Billie Holiday: Wishing on the Moon, she returned there in 1926 after she had been sexually assaulted.” ("Billie Holiday.")
Early on in life Holiday found solace in music, singing along to the records of Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong. She followed her mother who moved to New York City in the late 1920s. Around 1930, Holiday began singing in local clubs and changed her name to “Billie” after the film star Billie Dove. When Billie was 18 she was discovered by producer John Hammond when she was performing in a Harlem jazz club. Hammond was key to getting Holiday recording work with a rising clarinetist and bandleader Benny Goodman. She sang vocals for several tracks with Hammond as well as her first “profit-making” release “Your Mother's Son-In-Law” and the 193...
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...ay recorded Lady in Satin (1958) with the Ray Ellis Orchestra for Columbia. The next year she gave her last performance in New York City on May 25, 1959. A little while later, Holiday was sent to the hospital for heart and liver problems. On July 17, 1959, Holiday passed away from alcohol and drug related problems. Over 3,000 attended Holidays funeral July 21, 1959. ("Billie Holiday.")
Years later after Billie Holiday passed away she was inducted in to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. To this day Holiday has left a lasting effect on music today from the emotion in her unique voice to the connection she established with her fans to the basic fundamentals she used in her music. Her song “Strange Fruit” is and always be the song that makes her stand out the most because in incorporates all of her various concepts with music. ("Billie Holiday's Influence, Then and Now.")
“Strange Fruit” by Billie Holiday conveys the inhumane, gory lynchings of African-Americans in the American South, and how this highly unnatural act had entrenched itself into the society and culture of the South, almost as if it were an agricultural crop. Although the song did not originate from Holiday, her first performance of it in 1939 in New York City and successive recording of the song became highly popular for their emotional power (“Strange fruit,” 2017). The lyrics in the song highlight the contrast between the natural beauty and apparent sophistication of the agricultural South with the brutal violence of lynchings. Holiday communicates these rather disturbing lyrics through a peculiarly serene vocal delivery, accompanied by a hymn-like
Ethel Waters was born in Chester, Pennsylvania on October 31, 1896. She had a hard life in which she faced rejection from her mother and poverty. Waters' love of singing began as a child when she sang in church choirs but her childhood was cut short when at thirteen she married an abusive man, dropped out of sixth grade, and was divorced a year later. Shortly thereafter, she began working as a maid until two vaudeville producers discovered her while she was singing in a talent contest in 1917. She toured with vaudeville shows, and was billed as "Sweet Mama Stringbean" because of her height and thinness. In 1919, she left the vaudeville circuit and performed in Harlem nightclubs. Two years later she became one of the first black singers to cut a record on the Black Swan Record label with her release of "Down Home Blues" and "Oh, Daddy".
Ella was born in Newport News, Virginia on April 25, 1917. When alled “The First Lady of Song” by some fans. She was known for having beautiful tone, extended range, and great intonation, and famous for her improvisational scat singing. Ella sang during the her most famous song was “A-tiscket A-tasket”. Fitzgerald sang in the period of swing, ballads, and bebop; she made some great albums with other great jazz artists such as Duke Ellington, Count Basie, and Louis Armstrong. She influenced countless American popular singers of the post-swing period and also international performers such as the singer Miriam Makeba. She didn’t really write any of her own songs. Instead she sang songs by other people in a new and great way. The main exception
In 1933 Billie audition as a dancer when she was 18, but the judges said she was not good enough so they asked her if she could sing-she could. In 1939 Billy sang at a café called Café Society and the song was “Strange Fruit”. Holiday wanted the song to be recorded but it was forbidden because it was “too inflammatory” Strange Fruit is a song about racism. She did not want to sing it on many radio stations because they banned all the intense words in the song. She could have been killed by the Koo Klucks Klan if she sang that song. Promoters objected Billie Holiday because of her race. The style of her voice-often tries to sound like a horn instrument because she likes the sliding sound. She refused to sing like other singers. Billie slyly said on a radio interview,”I always wanted to sound like an instrument.” She changed her name to Billie Holiday because her favorite film star, Billie Dove. In 1944 Billie Holiday received the Esquire Magazine Gold Award for Best Leading Female Vocalist. She would then receive some more awards in the following years to come. She got the nickname “Lady Day”. She was discovered by John Hammond, a young producer at Monette’s, a Harlem night club. When he heard Billie’s voice he was
Her influence is simply not a question; it is a salutation to a musical icon that has embedded her legacy into musical history. When I think of the word artist, I think of someone who is innovative, original and someone who has style and a sound all their own. One artist that comes to mind is Janet Jackson. They simply don’t make artists like Janet anymore. Unfortunately, she was the last of her kind.
The music industry during the 1940s was filled with many talented artists who impacted the music industry and the history of rock n’ roll forever. But one of the very well known and talented artists was Buddy Holly. Buddy Holly was the first to pioneer new music genres and progressive music. Charles Hardin Holley (1936-1959) was an American musician and artist whose creative career began in 1956. The family name is correctly spelled “Holley” but his first recording contract from Decca Records in 1956 spelled his last name “Holly” and he kept it that way for the rest of his career (Griggs 1). Holly took a very influential position in the music industry and built an audience for his Rock and Roll music very quickly due to his unique voice and advanced knowledge of music. Buddy Holly is a prime example of a musical pioneer who blended resources from various music genres including a variety of popular genres such as rhythm and blues (RNB), oriental, and African (Schinder and Schwartz 85).
Aretha Franklin is a well known pop, R&B, and gospel singer. She has been nicknamed “The Queen of Soul” and is an internationally known artist and a symbol of pride in the African American community. Her popularity soared in 1967 when she released an album containing songs “I Never Loved a Man”, “Respect”, and “Baby I Love You.” Throughout her career she has achieved fifteen Grammy Awards, Lifetime Achievement Award, National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences Legend Awards, and many Grammy Hall of Fame Awards. In 1987 she became the first woman inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Time magazine chose her as one of the most influential artists and entertainers of the 20th century. She sang at Dr. Martin Luther King’s funeral and at former President Bill Clinton’s inaugural party. Although she has all these accomplishments and awards there are other reasons that have driven Franklin to fame and landed her on the front cover of Time magazine on June 28, 1968. The reasons I believe allowed Aretha Franklin to become so successful are the following: Her family’s involvement with religion, the inspiring people that surrounded her, and the pain she suffered.
Buddy Holly was a pioneer in rock and roll and an inspiration to many. The impact he made on the music industry and on his fans will last for years to come. Forever young, Buddy Holly’s impact on his fans is stronger than ever.
Holiday suffered a terrible loss when his mother Alice Jane died on September 16, 1886. This was a tragedy for Doc, due to being so close to his mother. Holidays father remarried Three months later to Rachel Martin on December 18, 1886. Then the family moved to Valdosta, Georgia. Due to his father’s high status, Holiday chose the profession of dentistry. In 1872 Holiday enrolled in Pennsylvania College of Dental and Surgery on March 1. He graduated with a class of twenty-six other men, and then soon opened an office with Dr. Arthur C. Ford in Atlanta.
One artist who contributed to rock and roll and helped change some of the image of the music was Joan Jett. “Joan Jett, born Joan Marie Larkin on September 22, 1958, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania USA, spent her childhood on the move before developing her love of Rock & Roll in California” (Joan Jett). Jett received her first guitar when she was 14 years old and was always interested in writing. Once Joan finally moved to California, she often hung out at a popular club for teens and became inspired by the music there. At the age of 15, Joan joined the band The Runaways and wrote the song “Cherry Bomb” (Joan Jett Biography). Joan Jett later went on to form her own band, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts and establish herself as one of the most influential women in rock and roll history. Today, Joan Jett still tours and produces music and is a household name for rock and roll fans.
Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday were both prominent jazz singer-songwriters during the same time and masters in their own right, but their worlds could not have been further apart. In 1939, while they were both in the midst of experiencing mainstream success, Ella was touring with Ella and her Famous Orchestra and showcasing her perfect pitch and tone to the world while singing songs that would soon become standards to fellow singers and musicians. Billie was singing solo, comfortable with her limited range, and gaining the adoration of audiences nationwide who loved her soulful voice. Both of these historic singers made contributions to the art of jazz, with vocalists and instrumentalists still using elements of their style today. Ella
One would think his music would be heard among today’s teenagers and young adults. However, the current teenage generation and the generation before it idolizes bands like The Rolling Stones and The Beatles, groups Chuck Berry directly influenced. Rolling Stones and The Beatles seem to be everywhere in 21st century culture. This is proof Chuck Berry has been not only instrumental but also highly underappreciated. To know Chuck Berry, one must know his early life, his influence, and the way he uses many different genres in his music.
Bessie was born April 15, 1894 in Chattanooga, Tennessee to a part time Baptist preacher, William Smith, and his wife Laura. The family was large and poor. Soon after she was born her father died. Laura lived until Bessie was only nine years old. The remaining children had to learn to take care of themselves. Her sister Viola then raised her. But it was her oldest brother, Clarence, who had the most impact on her. Clarence always encouraged Bessie to learn to sing and dance. After Clarence had joined the Moses Stokes Minstrel Show, Bessie got auditions. Bessie's career began when she was 'discovered' by none other than Ma Rainey when Ma's revue, the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, was passing through Chattanooga around 1912 and she had the occasion to hear young Bessie sing. Ma took Bessie on the road with the show and communicated, consciously or not, the subtleties and intricacies of an ancient and still emerging art form. (Snow).
In Billie Holiday’s I’ll be Seeing You there are references to childishness and comfort. When the lyrics talk about the “The park across the way” and “The children's carousel” it relates to the motif of adults being childlike. Bucky’s is immaturity is shown in his love of sports, his lack of desire to be respected, and his consumption of junk food. Although some adults have and/or do these things they are still associated with growing up. Additionally, it seems as if Billie Holiday is comforting the other person [presumably male] just as Marcia comforts Bucky. Billie is constantly telling the receiver of this song, “I’ll be seeing you,” and Marcia makes Bucky come to see her. This reversal of typical gender roles as a parallel to I’ll be Seeing
She died of a suicide and she that because at a certain point in her life she had enough of suffering.