An ongoing illustrative history study
This piece originally posted 6/10/2020
Also appropriate to Pride Month, meet the Mother Of The Blues herself.
"Ma" Rainey famously observed "white folks hear the blues come out, but they don't know how it got there." There isn't just subtext in some of her lyrics --it's laid out pretty darned clear for all to see. Go look for "Prove It On Me Blues" and "Deep Moaning Blues" and immerse yourself in her handiwork. To merely say that Ma Rainey influenced later generations of blues artists is... understating it a bit --in fact it can be argued that she actually coined the term "blues" itself!
Her life story is pretty amazing in its own right; keep an eye on your Netflix menu for Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, a biopic film based on the 1982 play of the same name, due to bow later this year starring Viola Davis and co-starring Chadwick Boseman.
Next page - Lesson 5: Bayard Rustin