In Netflix's new film Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, Viola Davis stars as the heavy makeup-wearing, velvety-voiced, super confident Ma Rainey. Based on August Wilson's play of the same name, most of the ...

"The Empress of the Blues" gave voice the listeners' tribulations and yearnings of the 1920s and '30s. A new 10-CD box set collects the complete... The Mythic Power Of Bessie Smith Vocalist Bessie ...

Add Yahoo as a preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. By the summer of 1927, Bessie Smith, the “Empress of the Blues” herself, was enjoying a high-riding career when her personal ...

This story is free to read because readers choose to support LAist. If you find value in independent local reporting, make a donation to power our newsroom today. SHAPIRO: Or does rock 'n' roll owe a ...

If Bessie Smith were alive today, she’d likely be singing the blues about North Carolina. A state advisory panel has recommended against approval of a highway historical marker for the night the blues ...

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (WDEF) — Tennessee Governor Bill Lee’s 2023-2024 budget includes funding for the Bessie Smith Cultural Center. State Rep. Yusuf Hakeen worked with the governor to ensure the grant ...

The Bessie Smith Cultural Center is the recipient of the prestigious FBI Director's Community Leadership Award. The FBI Director's Community Leadership Award is a recognition bestowed upon individuals ...

In the fall of 2018, Adia Victoria approached Ciona Rouse and Caroline Randall Williams about coming together for a group reading to celebrate her work as a blues musician. After attempts to meet at ...

Singer Bessie Smith's recording career lasted only 10 years, but during that time she created a body of work that helped shape the sound of the 20th century. Her first single, "Downhearted Blues" — ...