Biography

Ella Fitzgerald was born on April 25, 1917, in Newport News, Virginia. Fitzgerald and her mother moved to Yonkers, New York, and she loved dancing and singing, often catching shows at the Apollo Theater in Harlem. Her primary exposure to music was through attending services with her family at the Bethany African Methodist Episcopal Church and by listening to the jazz records her mother brought home for her. 

After her mother died in 1932, Fitzgerald went to go live with her aunt in Harlem, where she got in trouble with the law and was sent to a reform school. She faced terrible treatment at this school, and eventually escaped and found herself alone during the Great Depression. Fitzgerald began singing and performing on the streets of Harlem in order to make ends meet. In November 1934, seventeen-year-old Fitzgerald debuted in her first Amateur Night at the Apollo Theater. 

At 21 years old, she recorded hits that made her famous such as “Love and Kisses”, and “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938), which remained on the pop charts for seventeen weeks. The 1940’s ushered in the bebop style of jazz; Fitzgerald adopted it and excelled. Her 1945 recording of “Flying Home” was described as one of the most influential jazz recordings of the decade. After gaining much fame from singing her own renditions of famous jazz songs, Fitzgerald began appearing on television shows like “The Bing Crosby Show,” "The Frank Sinatra Show," and "The Ed Sullivan Show." 

Fitzgerald became an international star, known as "The First Lady of Song." Despite her declining health, she continued performing, sometimes two shows a day in different cities. Aside from music, Fitzgerald was a child welfare advocate and regularly made donations to help disadvantaged youth. She was awarded the National Medal of Arts by Ronald Reagan in 1987. She received many other awards, including honorary doctorates from Yale, Dartmouth, and several other universities.  Her last performance was at Carnegie Hall in New York in 1991. By the end of her career, she had recorded 2,000 songs, earned fourteen Grammy awards and the Presidential Medal of Freedom (1992). On June 15, 1996, Fitzgerald passed away at her home. The world responded with memorials and gratitude for the revolutionary gifts she gave to the world.

“Biography: Ella Fitzgerald.” National Women’s History Museum, https://www.womenshistory.org/education-resources/biographies/ella-fitzgerald. Accessed 6 Mar. 2024.