The Faces of Queer Jazz and Blues, Then and Now
When people think of the Harlem Renaissance, queerness may not be at the forefront of their minds — but it should be. Queer influence was just as prevalent then as it is now when it comes to innovations and explorations of genre. There is a rich queer history in New York City that predates Stonewall, with clubs like Savoy Ballroom and the Cotton Club, gay speakeasies like “Harry Hansberry’s Clam House,” and the beginning of drag balls (also called “the Harlem balls” and “fairy balls”). These balls, and generally more relaxed social settings, were in response to Prohibition restrictions and attracted people from all over the country to be a part of the show.
Aside from speakeasies and drag balls, people also used to throw private “rent parties.” As the name suggests, these parties were a form of mutual aid, thrown to raise money to help pay for the host’s living expenses. One prominent figure in the queer Harlem Renaissance jazz scene got her start at one of these parties: singer, pianist, and drag performer Gladys Bentley. She would perform in men’s clothing with drag queens as her backup singers and flirt with women in the audience as she unashamedly sang about her lesbian relationships. Her popularity helped inspire queer artists then and now.
Bessie Smith, who was known as “the Empress of the Blues,” was an openly bisexual jazz and blues singer originally from Chattanooga, Tennessee. She became so well renowned that she ended up being the highest-paid Black entertainer of her time. Jimmie Daniels, a performer, actor, and nightclub owner from Texas who got his start in Harlem’s Hot-Cha nightclub, later became a renowned jazz and show tunes singer. Ma Rainey, known as “The Mother of Blues,” was sexually fluid. She was rumored to have dated Bessie Smith and released the song, “Prove It On Me,” which Angela Davis called “a precursor to the lesbian cultural movement of the 1970s.” Alberta Hunter was a jazz and blues singer whose music had a strong cabaret influence. She married a man, but they divorced shortly after, and she spent the rest of her life dating women, including Lottie Tyler, with whom she had a long on-and-off-again relationship. Unlike other queer performers, she was private about her love life and never open about her sexuality, but historians presume she was a lesbian.
Unfortunately, jazz and blues have decreased in popularity in the years since the Harlem Renaissance, with R&B (rhythm and blues) taking over as the prominent genre. Still, there are some artists that incorporate jazz and blues influences into their music — like Lizzie No, a queer R&B and folk songwriter, harpist, and guitarist from Tennessee. Destin Conrad is also an up-and-coming queer R&B musician. His album “COLORWAY” features popular queer R&B artists such as CHIKA, Kehlani, and Ambré. Queer indie pop and folk artist Arlo Parks is also making sweet modern music that garners inspiration from past jazz artists who inspire her songwriting.
The Harlem Renaissance was a great cultural and artistic era for both Black people in
America in general and Black queer people specifically. Their legacy lives on in spirit through modern Black queer artists, but the death of jazz and blues as popular genres is a huge loss. I think it may be time for a queer jazz and blues revival, don’t you?