Empress Of The Blues, The Bessie Smith Story

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When one thinks about the blues, it seems as though the style is solely about, well, being blue. Although blues often deals with personal adversity, it also deals with overcoming hardships and moving on. The blues lets an artist tell a story through music, and contrary to the name of the style, blues music does not always have to be sad. I must admit, I have never been a blues fan because I was convinced that blues music is depressing. But, after listening to a few songs, I learned that while some songs are very sad, others are up beat, cathartic, and even humorous! Bessie Smith is a blues artist whose music covers all the emotions. A few of her songs may be sassy and humorous, and others may be dark and saddening. Bessie Smith was not afraid to show her emotions and true self in her songs, and for that reason, became known as the Empress of the blues; she was the the most popular female singer in the 1920’s and 1930’s. …show more content…
She lived in a one room shack that was shared between her, her two parents, and her seven other siblings. Smith went to school up to the eighth grade and then started preforming on the corners of streets with her younger brother and collected the change she would get. After a successful audition for the minstrel taupe, Smith was under the wing of “Ma” Rainey, where her career officially began. She made her way to Philadelphia and after a few rejections from recording companies, Smith finally recorder her first big hit called “Down Hearted Blues” with Columbia Records. As her popularity grew, Smith was making around $2,000 a week from her live performances, and by 1924, she was the highest paid black entertainer in the country
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