Every Friday around 11 a.m. Central, it’s time for Classic Americana on Radio Heartland. We pull a special track from the archives or from deep in the shelves to spotlight a particular artist or song.

This week for our Classic Americana pick, we’re shining a spotlight on Ma Rainey, known as The Mother of the Blues. She was born Gertrude Pridgett on April 26, 1886, although some sources suggest she was born in 1882.

Pridgett’s performing career began when she was about 13 years old, when she appeared in a talent show in her hometown of Columbus, Georgia. In 1904, Pridgett married William Rainey, who was known by the nickname “Pa” — as a result, Pridgett took on the moniker Ma Rainey, the name by which she is known and remembered to this day. 

Early in her career, Rainey was performing in vaudeville shows, many of them unfortunately propagating negative Black stereotypes to white audiences. But something transformative happened around 1912, when a woman Rainey was performing with played her a sad song about a man leaving a woman. Rainey was captivated by this style of music and began pursuing it herself; when asked what kind of music it was, Rainey is said to have called it “the blues.”

Rainey and her husband broke from the minstrelsy shows in 1914, and instead began performing as “Rainey and Rainey, Assassinators of the Blues.” They spent time in New Orleans where they connected with many influential musicians at the foundation of jazz and blues, including Louis Armstrong. Rainey later met Bessie Smith — another foundational blues singer — and the two toured and performed together, reaching audiences throughout the United States, boosting the popularity of the blues in the North and South, urban and rural. 

By the 1920s, the popularity of the blues combined with the growth of the phonograph created intense demand for blues records. Chicago-based Paramount Records recruited Ma Rainey and signed her to a contract, and she made approximately 100 recordings on the label, including “Stack O’Lee Blues,” which is based on the melody of “Frankie and Johnny,” another popular song of the era. The recording, made in 1925, features Louis Armstrong on cornet. It was one of several recordings that Rainey made with Armstrong. Another standout track is “Prove It On Me,” one of Ma Rainey’s originals with lyrics that hint at Rainey’s bisexuality.

Ironically, the popularity of records signaled the end of the touring circuit for Ma Rainey, and as the blues continued to evolve as a genre, Rainey’s delivery was less in demand, and Paramount ended her contract. That said, Rainey had been successful enough as a performer that she returned to her hometown of Columbus, Georgia, and enjoyed a successful second career as the operator of three theaters in the city.

In 1939, Rainey died of a heart attack at age 53, but her legacy is very strong. Her deep, gravelly vocal delivery has influenced a number of other singers — including her friend Louis Armstrong and present-day artist Bonnie Raitt.

The playwright August Wilson wrote Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, inspired by Rainey’s recording of the song by that name. The play was adapted into the 2020 film starring Viola Davis, which received five Oscar nominations and took home two of them.

Ma Rainey herself was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame in 1983 and into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990. In 2023, the Recording Academy honored Rainey with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award noting her contributions to the American musical canon.

Classic Americana Playlist

External Link

Gertrude “Ma” Rainey – National Women’s History Museum