#ResistanceRoots #Voices4Victory #BlackHistoryMonth Today in history, 1923: Bessie Smith cuts her first record, “Down Hearted Blues,” selling 800,000 copies in the first six months. Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the Jazz Age and a major influence on blues and jazz vocalists. /1 - ThreadSky

bambooshooti.bsky.social • 7 days ago

#ResistanceRoots
#Voices4Victory
#BlackHistoryMonth

Today in history, 1923: Bessie Smith cuts her first record, “Down Hearted Blues,” selling 800,000 copies in the first six months. Smith was the most popular female blues singer of the Jazz Age and a major influence on blues and jazz vocalists. /1

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bambooshooti.bsky.social•7 days ago

Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tenn., on April 15, 1894. Her parents died when she was young, leaving her and her siblings destitute. She and her brother earned a few pennies by busking on Chattanooga streetcorners. She sang and danced while he played the guitar. /1

bambooshooti.bsky.social•7 days ago

By the time she was 18, Smith was performing in chorus lines and in 1913 developed her own act. She was soon known throughout the South and on the East Coast. In 1923, she signed a contract with Columbia, which was looking to capitalize on the emerging market for “race records.” /2

bambooshooti.bsky.social•7 days ago

Smith made 160 recordings for Columbia and became the highest-paid Black entertainer of her day. The press dubbed her Empress of the Blues. Her powerful contralto voice translated well to records, radio and vaudeville acts. The Great Depression hampered her career but she continued to perform. /3

bambooshooti.bsky.social•7 days ago

Smith died as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash in 1937. (That’s a story unto itself.) She was buried in an unmarked grave until a tombstone was erected in 1970, paid for in part by Janis Joplin, who had been influenced by Smith’s work. /end

zen4ever2us.bsky.social•7 days ago

Thank you so much for teaching us about the incredibly talented, beautiful and brilliant Bessie Smith. 😍💗

bambooshooti.bsky.social•7 days ago

You're very welcome, Liz. 💙

anacorn.bsky.social•6 days ago

Thanks for the post. It's a reflection of our current times that it feels like an act of resistance to celebrate Black History Month.

bambooshooti.bsky.social•6 days ago

I know you mean. Thank you for reading #ResistanceRoots. Let's keep this history alive.

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