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Questions and Answers
Who was Bessie Smith?
Who was Bessie Smith?
Bessie Smith was a popular female African American musician in the 1920s.
What did Ma Rainey teach Bessie Smith?
What did Ma Rainey teach Bessie Smith?
Ma Rainey taught Bessie how to sing in a way that would move audiences.
What did Bessie Smith do when the public began to get tired of the blues?
What did Bessie Smith do when the public began to get tired of the blues?
Bessie remade herself into a swing musician and began doing more upbeat, jazzy pieces.
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Study Notes
- Bessie Smith was a popular female African American musician in the 1920s
- She was born near Chattanooga, Tennessee and was a street singer before meeting Ma Rainey
- Ma Rainey taught her how to sing in a way that would move audiences
- Bessie signed up with a different group of vaudeville performers and began touring, making records and earning more money
- Bessie played with the best musicians she could find and her voice made them sound even better
- By 1930, the public began to get tired of the blues and wanted happier songs
- Bessie changed by remaking herself into a swing musician and began doing more upbeat, jazzy pieces
- She made a recording with a new band and was launching a comeback shortly before her death
- Bessie’s career was short-lived, but her voice lives on through over 160 recordings of her music
- She is known as the “Empress of the Blues” and continues to move audiences with her timeless voice.
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