Mahalia Jackson (1911)
As a child, Jackson sang at the New Orleans church where her father preached. After moving to Chicago, she sang with a touring gospel quintet. Her warm, powerful voice first came to wider public attention in the 1930s. Called “The Queen of Gospel,” she sang at an inaugural party for US President John F. Kennedy, at the 1963 March on Washington, and at the funeral of Martin Luther King, Jr. Despite many offers, she refused to sing secular songs. Jackson was born with what physical deformity? More…
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