Category : Performance

A Pioneer of Ragtime and Early Jazz Eubie Blake, born James Hubert Blake on February 7, 1887, in Baltimore, Maryland, was a prominent American pianist,...

Noble Sissle (1889-1975) was an American composer, lyricist, bandleader, and playwright. He is best known for his contributions to the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural and...

Alberta Hunter, (born April 1, 1895, Memphis, Tennessee, U.S.—died October 17, 1984, New York, New York), American blues singer who achieved international fame in the...

Bessie Smith, in full Elizabeth Smith, (born April 15, 1898?, Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S.—died September 26, 1937, Clarksdale, Mississippi), American singer, one of the greatest blues...

The Mother of the Blues Gertrude “Ma” Rainey (1886–1939) was a pioneering American blues singer, performer, and entrepreneur who earned the enduring title of “Mother...

Cotton Club, the legendary nightspot in the Harlem district of New York City that for years featured prominent black entertainers who performed for white audiences....

W.C. Handy, born William Christopher Handy on November 16, 1873, in Florence, Alabama, was a pioneering American blues composer and musician. He is often referred...

Spike Lee, by name of Shelton Jackson Lee, (born March 20, 1957, in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.), is an American filmmaker known for his uncompromising provocative...