Bessie Smith

#BessieSmith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937): Smith was a #blues singer well known throughout the United States during the #JazzAge and given the nickname the #EmpressOfTheBlues. Born and raised in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Smith and siblings suffered and struggled after the death of their parents (Smith’s father died when she was an infant and her mother passed away when she was nine). She and her brother would often busk to make money, and eventually they would work together in a traveling musical troupe. Smith was hired as a dancer for the troupe, as they already had a singer, #MaRainey. It is widely believed that though Rainey certainly didn’t teach Smith how to sing, she likely taught her how to develop her stage presence. In 1923, Smith began her recording career and was signed to #ColumbiaRecords. Her popularity soared, and she became the highest-paid Black entertainer of the day and traveled in her own 72-foot-long railroad car to performances. She was married at this time, though it was plagued with infidelities on both sides – as Smith explored her bisexuality. With the Great Depression Smith’s career took a dive as they began putting sound in films, thereby putting an end to the vaudeville circuit that had been Smith’s bread and butter throughout the 1920s. She never stopped performing, however, even appearing in the Broadway show “Pansy,” and in the movie #StLouisBlues. In 1937, Smith was in a horrific car crash which led to blood loss, head injuries, and her right arm almost completely severed. While moving her body into the car of a doctor, the car was hit a second time by incoming traffic. Though there has been an enduring story of Bessie Smith dying because they would not admit her to a whites-only hospital, there is no evidence of this and even her biographer dismissed this legend, saying “The Bessie Smith ambulance would not have gone to a white hospital; you can forget that. Down in the Deep South Cotton Belt, no ambulance driver, or white driver, would even have thought of putting a colored person off in a hospital for white folks.” Smith was buried in an unmarked grave, which was finally given a headstone in 1970, paid for by #JanisJoplin and #JuanitaGreen. #PrideMonth #LGBTQIA #LGBTQIAPride #Pride #LegendsOfPride #YouCannotEraseUs