An Amazing Artist: Ella Fitzgerald
“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything”. This famous quote from the renowned Athenian philosopher, Plato, resonates throughout the history of music and withstands the test of time. One of the most important genres in the history of music that embodies Plato’s depiction of music is Jazz. Through its improvisation as well as cohesive melodies and harmonies, Jazz provides a sense of soul and rhythm that is very unique and captivating. Within Jazz, we can pinpoint revolutionary artists who elevated this style of music to the next level, one of those artists being Ella Fitzgerald. Ella Fitzgerald was a very successful female Jazz singer who stole the hearts of millions across the world through her amazing talent all throughout her career which lasted more than half a century. Diving deeper into Fitzgerald’s life, we can see how she not only impacted music but also took a stand against racism the world faced at the time by pushing through the adversity she faced.
Ella Jane Fitzgerald was born in the city of Newport News, Virginia in April of 1917. Her biological birth parents, William and Temperance, experienced some relationship issues and ended up parting ways following her birth. Consequently, Ella’s mother took her and decided to move to Yonkers, New York. In Yonkers, Temperance began dating Joseph Da Silva who, later on, became Ella’s stepfather. Growing up, Ella enjoyed sports as well as singing and dancing, occasionally taking trips to Harlem’s Apollo Theater to enjoy various acts. Becoming a dancer was her first childhood dream. Her childhood also came with hardships. Given their financial situation, Ella decided to help out her family as much as she could by taking on some small jobs delivering money for local gamblers. Sadly, when Ella was about 15 years old (1932) her mother died in a car accident leaving Ella very depressed. Ella’s aunt took her back to Virginia shortly thereafter where Ella continued her education. However, the loss of her mother steered Ella down the wrong path. She began to do poorly in school and started getting in trouble with the law which resulted in her getting sent to reform school. She managed to escape from reform school only to find herself alone and financially troubled during the Great Depression, yet she strove to survive and was able to make it out.
Good fortune came about Ella’s way not too long after she began living in the streets. In 1934, Ella entered an Amateur Night contest at Apollo where she sang Hoagy Carmichael’s song “Judy”, one of her mother’s favorites, and “The Object of My Affections.” The crowd loved her performance and so did the band, specifically saxophonist Benny Carter who went on and introduced her to people who would help begin her career in music. From there on, she began entering talent contests all around and was winning so much, she managed to be granted the opportunity to perform with the Tiny Bradshaw band in 1935. This was where Ella first met Chick Webb, the bandleader. Chick had already decided on a male lead for his band but gave Ella a chance to prove him wrong anyway. She ended up impressing him enough to be hired to travel with the band. Ella’s first recording, “Love and Kisses” came out in 1936. During this time, she also was performing live at Harlem’s Savoy Ballroom with Chick. Later on, Ella released “If You Can’t Sing It, You Have to Swing It” during a time when big bands were coming to a halt and bebop was taking over by storm. Her popularity grew with the release of her hit album “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” and she became a star. After Chick Webb’s passing in 1939, Ella took over as bandleader, and the band was renamed “Ella Fitgerald and Her Famous Band”. In 1946, Ella ended up marrying Ray Brown, a bassist from Dizzy Gillespie’s band. Ray worked for producer Norman Granz who saw Ella and immediately convinced her to sign with him. This agreement blossomed into a great partnership and friendship. As a star under Granz, Ella appeared on many tv shows and worked with a plethora of amazing musicians including Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, the Gershwins, Johnny Mercer, Irving Berlin, and Rodgers Hart. Sadly, her busy lifestyle led to a divorce with her husband in 1952, but the two remained friends as Ella continued her career.
As time passed, Ella became recognized on a grand scale. She received many accolades over the years including induction into the Down Beat magazine Hall of Fame in 1979 and the National Medal of Arts from President Reagan in 1987. In the midst of her success, Ella also suffered from health issues, undergoing quintuple coronary bypass surgery and a diabetes diagnosis in 1986. However, that did not stop her from continuing to make music. She continued up until 1991 before finally retiring. Shortly thereafter, Ella’s diabetes became so severe that she had to have both legs amputated below her knees. Ella never truly recovered and ended up passing away on June 15th, 1996. Even though she is gone, her music and impact will last forever.
Taking a closer look at some of Ella’s songs mentioned above really highlights her unique talent. Released under the Decca label, her first recording “Love and Kisses” was a fairly successful song and also her first release with Chick Webb. This song emphasizes her vocal range very well as she goes from lower to higher pitches. Also, her ability to harmonize with the pacing and rhythm of jazz music is illustrated in this song as well. This song helped show Ella’s flexibility as a singer and established her career. “If You Can’t Sing It, You Have to Swing It” is another song that stands out. In this song, Ella had begun to experiment with her improvisation through singing known as scat singing which the fans grew to love. While scat singing, she shaped her voice to take on the sound of a horn, adding to the sounds produced by the instruments. This inspiration to experiment came about due to Ella’s admiration of the bebop revolution. Scat singing became one of Ella’s biggest appeals, seeing as she created such beautiful art with her words. Lastly, we have “A-Tisket, A-Tasket.” This song was Ella’s playful take on an old nursery rhyme which really illustrated her bold creativity as a songwriter. This song was very popular, becoming a number one hit, topping charts for 17 weeks, and selling over 1 million copies of the album.
Although Ella Fitzgerald was a celebrity and star of the music industry, her rise to stardom did not come easy. Fitzgerald often performed in very racially segregated areas and was harassed in doing so given that she was a female and an African American. Ella’s manager, Norman Granz, fought for equality and did not stand for discrimination. In 1955, Granz removed the “Negro” and “White” labels from bathrooms before one of Ella and Dizzy’s shows in Houston. Given the conservative nature of Houston, this attempt did not bode well for Ella. After the show, police arrested Ella and Dizzy as well as many other band members for no apparent reason. She recalled that the cops even “had the nerve to ask for an autograph” as well. However, even though Ella went through many situations such as these, she kept pushing on in her career. Her gender and race may have deterred some venues from having her perform, but her talent was far too great to be denied for long. She even drew the attention of Marilyn Monroe who became a big supporter and even arranged for Ella to perform at the club known as Mocambo, making her the first African American to do so. Using her grit and determination, as well as the help of her friends, Ella was able to push past these racial barriers and become an inspiration for people all around. Consequently, she was awarded the Nation Association for the Advancement of Colored People Equal Justice Award and the American Black Achievement Award. I really respect Ella Fitzgerald for advancing in such a way and fighting against oppression and I hope many people continue to have her passion for equality.
Ella Fitzgerald is one of the most influential jazz artists of her time. The challenges she faced early in her life as well as the ones faced during her career were very difficult, but she still managed to become a success. Her story is a very inspiring one and her musical talent is unmatched. The creativity she brought to jazz music changed and shaped the genre in the years to follow. Ella Fitzgerald will be remembered for years to come, not only for her impact on music but for her courage and tenacity when it came to fighting racism. Jazz would not be the same without her.
