Bessie Smith

Bessie Smith
Smith in 1936
Background information
Also known as	Empress of the Blues
Born	(1894-04-15)April 15, 1894 Chattanooga, Tennessee, U.S.
Died	September 26, 1937(1937-09-26) (aged 43) Clarksdale, Mississippi, U.S.
Genres	Classic blues jazz
Occupation(s)	Singer actress
Instrument(s)	Vocals
Years active	1912–1937
Labels	Columbia Okeh

Bessie Smith (April 15, 1894 – September 26, 1937) was an African-American blues singer widely renowned during the Jazz Age. Nicknamed the "Empress of the Blues", she was the most popular female blues singer of the 1930s. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989, she is often regarded as one of the greatest singers of her era and was a major influence on fellow blues singers, as well as jazz vocalists.^[1]

Born in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Smith was young when her parents died, and she and her six siblings survived by performing on street corners. She began touring and performed in a group that included Ma Rainey, and then went out on her own. Her successful recording career with Columbia Records began in 1923, but her performing career was cut short by a car crash that killed her at the age of 43.