Billie Holiday Essay

that is what Billie Holiday did. Billie had a life that she may not have dreamed of since it started out rough with her mistreatment from adults and discouraging misfortunes, but she was ambitious and that showed through her singing career. Billie could usually adapt to her life’s problems except for her drug addiction and alcohol abuse, which unfortunately led to her demise. She was a talented woman who sang and helped create hit songs that aided her to rise to fame. Billie Holiday bravely stood

Billie Holiday, whose real name is Eleanora Gough, was born in Philadelphia Pennsylvania in 1915. She grew up mostly in Baltimore and always loved jazz. Billie was born to very young parents. Her mother was thirteen when she was born and her father just fifteen. (www.numberonestars.com, 2010) Her father made his living as a jazz musician and later he left Billie’s mother. Billie was raised by her mother and grandparents. Billie was not a happy child and eventually left school at an early age

Many have the ability to reach and touch people’s souls through their amazing gifts. Although this art of turning notes and lyrics into emotional imagery may somewhat come natural, the audience must wonder where their influence comes from. For Billie Holiday, her career was highly influenced by personal experience, the effects of the Great Depression, and the racial challenges of African Americans during her time. The Great Depression was a major historical event that affected thousands of Americans

Billie Holiday Billie Holiday was born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but spent most of her poverty stricken childhood in Baltimore. Lady Day, as she was named by Lester Young, had to overcome many tragedies in her lifetime and yet still became one of the most popular jazz-blues vocalists of all time.      Billie's Parents, Sally Fagan and Clarence Holiday, were both born in Baltimore. They married as teens and soon Sally gave birth to Eleanora Fagan. Shortly

Billie was born to the name, Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915. She was born in Philadelphia but grew up in the Fell's Point section of Baltimore. Her mother, was just 13 at the time of her birth; her father, was 15. Holidays' teenage parents, Sadie Harris (aka Fagan) and probable father, Clarence Holiday, never married, and they did not live together for a long time. Clarence, a banjo and guitar player worked with Fletcher Henderson's band in the early 30s. He remains a shady figure who left his family

The Voice of Billie Holiday       A woman stands before you, and although she isn't a politician, she expresses her moving thoughts on issues that affect all Americans. Her voice isn't harsh or demanding in tone. Her stature is slender and traced in a shimmer of light that reflects from her dress. A southern magnolia is lying comfortably above her ear. She sings. She sings of incomprehension, of hate, and of a race's pain. She sings low and confused. She sings as "Our Lady of Sorrow"(Davis

Billie Holiday The Harlem Renaissance was an African American cultural movement specifically in creative arts such as music and literature. Jazz represented the flavor and zest of African American culture in the 1920s-1940s. Billie Holiday had a great impact on the Harlem Renaissance because she was one of the most influential jazz singers of all time. She performed with other great jazz musicians such as Louis Armstrong, Teddy Wilson, Jo Jones, and Henry Allen. Her career as a jazz singer was

To understand the controversy that Billie presented one must first go to the root or source of such controversy and examine Billie's childhood. Billie was born Eleanora Harris to her father Clarence Holiday and mother Sadie Fagan who were just fifteen and thirteen years old, respectively, at the time (A 91). Born between 1912 and 1915 in Baltimore, the date unsure, Billie grew up without her father, who moved away early on in her life. Billie and her mother used to fight a lot, when her mother

myself and that's nobody's business but my own.” Billie Holiday, some call her “queen of jazz”, is an African American jazz female singer and songwriter who had tremendous influence on jazz and pop culture. Billie Holiday had a tough youth as she grew up. Her father, Clarence Holiday, abandoned her and her family to pursue his music dream when Holiday was still a baby. In furtherance of take off some of the pressure for the family financially, Holiday started to perform singing in different Harlem

Americans mostly and had many incredible artists. Artists such as Billie Holiday, Miles Davis and the famous Louis Armstrong are some of the fan favorites. Their smooth, peaceful melodies kept people of all races listening to the beat. Although jazz music is not as popular as it used to be, the artist’s legacy will always be strong. To begin with, Billie Holiday was one of the most influential female jazz artists of all time. Holiday, who was born Elenora Fagan, began her career at age twenty in 1935

Billie Holiday was “born Eleanora Fagan on April 7, 1915, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania”(Billie Holiday Biography.com). Her parents; Sarah Julia Fagan and Clarence Holiday had her at the ages of 16 and 18.Her father Clarence later on in his life became a successful jazz singer which is most likely where her talent came from. Billie’s life was far from a walk in the park. Billie never had a father figure in her life. Her mother, Sarah married Philip Gough when Billie was just 5 years old but

they had too much freedom, and thought that blacks were getting away with too much. Lynching of black people was mostly high in the south, but there was still no laws against lynching. Billie Holiday, real name Eleanora Fagan, was a very brave individual who had an impact with one of her songs she performed. Billie herself felt uneasy when singing “Strange Fruit”, which is understandable considering the possible backlash against her. With the fear of retaliation against her for this song, she still

Strange Fruit by Billie Holiday Billie Holiday was a well known jazz singer who was born in Pennsylvania on April 7, 1915. She was also known as Elanora Fagon in which unfortunately had fallen victim in her life towards the addiction of heroin. In conjunction with her addiction, she developed a criminal record due to her numerous arrests relating to her drug abuse and prostitution. She eventually checked herself into an institution to help break her addiction. However, at the young age of forty-four

fruit applies to the lynching of African Americans. This song was performed by Billie Holiday in 1939 at the Cafe Society in New York. The music video was actually a recorded performance from 1959. The song was written and performed because the purpose of was to raise awareness and fight against African American lynching because during that time, African Americans were being discriminated and abused. Billie Holiday in the music video/song “Strange Fruit” displays logos through context and imagery

There are many important women who significantly contributed to Jazz and left a legacy of women artists. In the early years of Jazz, it was considered a male professional and women who tried to be part of Jazz faced obstacles. This was from male musicians, critics, record producers, club-owners, concerts and also racism. Despite the obstacles, women forced their way to be part of Jazz and pushed for equality and visibility (“Gender Discrimination, 2014). Dolly Adams was a pianist and multi-instrumentalist

Billie Holiday was one of the most influential jazz singers of all time and she had a thriving career for many years. Holiday’s interest in a musical career began when she was around fifteen years old. She had a rough childhood and turning to music was a good thing for her. She began singing in local clubs around New York. By the age of eighteen, she was discovered by producer John Hammond, while performing in a Harlem jazz club. He worked with up-and-coming clarinetist and bandleader Benny Goodman

Billie Holiday “I’m always making a comeback but nobody even tells me where i’ve been’’ stated Billie Holiday. Billie Holiday was one of the greatest jazz vocalists of her time. She had a music involved childhood, a career in jazz music and also a unique element to her career. In fact, Holiday’s love for music started when she was very young. Billie Holiday was born on April 7, 1915 and died on July 17, 1959. She was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but she grew up in Baltimore, Maryland. Her

remembered today. Jazz music was highly popular in this time, and Billie Holiday was a famous jazz performer. She stood out from many other musicians because of her intense and passionate performances. Jazz arose from “unacceptable” segments of society, but quickly grew like wildfire. We often think of the 1930’s as the decade that jazz became civilized, and famous throughout popular culture through the work of pioneering artists like Billie Holiday. People did not own televisions or cable, so radio was their

Artists in modern music have been using more and more samples of older music as they run out of ideas. Samples of older songs can enhance the feel of new music and give older people a portion to relate to within current music. A lot of the time, the younger generation doesn’t know where the sample actually came from or the story behind it. Also many listeners don’t know how much it has changed or been through to fit into the song they are now listening to. Like in Kanye’s “Blood on the Leaves”, Kanye

Billie Holiday, Singer, Hero With the rise of the Harlem Renaissance many African-Americans could show their work on a massive scale. There were many parts to the Harlem Renaissance including art, fashion, dance, and music, mostly jazz. Many up and coming musicians could show their views through music, to a large segment of the population. They confronted the social problems of their day, which included segregation, wrongful prosecution, and past slavery (Berg 27). One singer in particular, Billie