Queen Sylvia Embry
For a period of time in the ‘70s and ‘80s, it appeared that Queen Sylvia Embry was going to emerge as one of Chicago’s leading...
Category : Performance
The True Story of Erroll Garner, the First Artist to Sue a Major Label and Win
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It’s not at all unusual for artists to engage in creative or financial differences with their record labels, but only a few end up in...
Memphis Minnie
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Memphis Minnie, known as the “Queen of the Blues,” was a singer, guitarist, and songwriter. Her title stems from her legacy of successfully recording music...
William Edmondson
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William Edmondson was the first black artist to have a solo show at the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), New York in 1937. He grew...
White Supremacy Tried to Kill Jazz. The Music Triumphed.
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Dodging violent attacks by racist and drunken “fans,” resisting pressure from drug-peddling bosses and inhaling smoke for hours in dank clubs comprised the “common plight”...
Ernest “Ernie” Eugene Barnes, Jr
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Ernest “Ernie” Eugene Barnes, Jr. (July 15, 1938 – April 27, 2009) was an African-American painter, well known for his unique style of elongation and...
Dick Gregory
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Dick Gregory, comedian, actor, and civil rights activist, was born Richard Claxton Gregory in 1932 in St. Louis, Missouri. Gregory’s father left the family when...
Sophia Stewart
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The writer of the Terminator and Matrix movies Child prodigy, prolific writer, poet, and creative genius are just a few of the terms used to...
Clarence Matthew Baker
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Clarence Matthew Baker (December 10, 1921 – August 11, 1959) was an American comic book artist who drew the costumed crimefighter Phantom Lady, among many...
Matilda Sissieretta Jones
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Matilda Sissieretta Jones, née Joyner, byname Black Patti, or Madame Jones, (born Jan. 5, 1869, Portsmouth, Va., U.S.—died June 24, 1933, Providence, R.I.), opera singer...