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So much more than a blues singer, Bessie Smith was an icon for her race and gender, and her legend resonates like no other in the history of blues singers.
A question of boundaries lays at the heart of music censorship, but artists have always pushed back, fighting for the freedom to express themselves.
Near the end of her own tragically short life, Janis made a remarkable gesture to honour one of her blues heroines.
As talent scout, producer, musicologist, broadcaster, journalist and mentor, Hammond helped the world to discover some of the greatest musicians of all time.
Birthing some of the world’s greatest music, the history of New York’s Apollo Theater parallels “the evolution of black American identity”.
The history of recorded jazz is hard to pin down. So many conflicting stories make up a rich patchwork that guides us towards the truth of how jazz began.
There is no shortage of talented vocalists, but the best female jazz singers possess unique voices which hold their own against their male counterparts.
As one of the most influential forces in music and culture, here is infographic snapshot of historical milestones that helped to bring about the blues.
Louis Armstrong moved to New York in 1924 and began working as a session musician for Blues Divas like Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey and Clara Smith
A new production of The Devil's Music: The Life and Blues of Bessie Smith has had its US west coast premiere.
Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out is quintessential blues with a recording pedigree that goes from 1927 to the present day
Dinah Washington's version of Unforgettable hit the Hot 100 on 5 October 1959, and later joined Nat 'King' Cole's in the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Motown giant Smokey Robinson has been named as the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s latest Music Master, the 20th artist to be so honoured.
‘Bessie,’ the HBO movie starring Queen Latifah as Bessie Smith, will air on the network on May 16, and we have the trailer for it here.
