| |
| Bessie Smith |
 Known as the Empress of the Blues, Bessie Smith was born in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Her date of birth is uncertain and is variously given as 1894-6, 1898, and 1900. 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. Bessie started working small-time traveling tent shows, such as Charles P. Bailey''s troupe and Pete Werley''s Florida Cotton Blossoms, carnivals, and hony-tonks. Her first recording, Down Hearted Blues, was released in the spring of 1923. Though released without special promotion, it was an immediate success, and had sold over two million copies by the end of the first year of release, an immense number for that time. As a result of her hit, she started touring on the best race a |
| |
|