Ella Fitzgerald, a music industry icon, took the styles of scatting and bebop to new heights in jazz music with her unique talents. As a young African-American girl from Virginia growing up in a troubled home, she had a true passion for jazz that would guide her to success as great as the idols she praised. Fitzgerald's transcendent vocal career was influenced by his troubled childhood and inspired by his admiration for the music world's leading jazz singers. Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayFitzgerald was born in Newport News, Virginia on April 25, 1917, to her mother Temperance and her father William, who give up shortly after. She and her mother then moved to Yonkers, New York to live with her spouse, Joseph Da Silva and they soon gave birth to Fitzgerald's half-sister, Frances. Even though they were not living in destitution, they still had financial difficulties. To support the family, her stepfather had to work two jobs and her mother worked long hours at a laundromat. Fitzgerald worked as a runner (someone who collected bets) for gamblers in her community to help support her family. She and her family attended Bethany African Methodist Episcopal Church where they became familiar with formal musical arrangements. Fitzgerald listened to radio performances and recordings of “Bing Crosby, the Boswell Sisters, Louis Armstrong as they nurtured her gift of imitation,” which led her further down the jazz path. Through music, she made many friends in her community, some even sharing a passion for dancing with her. Her first dream was to become a dancer growing up in New York,” she took inspiration from “Snake Hips” Tucker, studying his snake moves. and practice them constantly with friends.” They would take the train to the Apollo Theater in Harlem to see many artists perform on stage and longed for the chance to perform. Later, Fitzgerald's mother died from serious injuries caused by a car accident, leading her to move in with her aunt. As she struggled with the loss of her mother, Fitzgerald hit rock bottom, where her grades were poor and all hope was gone. This led her to act out and get into trouble with the law and was eventually arrested. In this era, when a child became disturbed, he was sent to a reform school, which is where Fitzgerald ended up. The faculty was very crowded and "overwhelmed as the Great Depression converged with the great migration of poor blacks from the rural South." During her time there, she was frequently beaten by officials and woke up with "bruises as black as the night." In 1932, at the age of 15, she finally escaped the reformatory, but fell out into the world during the Great Depression. Fitzgerald took on the streets and "tried to make it on her own while still nurturing her dream of performing on stage." This part of his childhood gave him the strength and passion that allowed him to be a fascinating idol. And all his memories were a vital benefit to his stage presence. In her younger years, she experienced abuse, starvation and homelessness, but this only gave her more courage to “find her dream and make it happen.” A year later, she finally got the chance to perform at the Harlem Apollo Theater, one of the first theaters to offer entertainment to the publicblack, which was an essential part of the Harlem Renaissance. After winning a competition, she went on stage with her original idea of ​​dancing but she decided at the last minute to sing and she then captivated the audience with her pure voice. She often felt self-conscious about her appearance, which could lead to doubts about her performance, but on stage, "Ella was surprised to find that she contained no fear, as if she were supposed to be there" (Stone 49). During the era of the big swing bands, there was a shift in music that focused on be-bop. From then on, people were fascinated by her and her unique voice, so much so that in March 1935, she was offered the chance to sing with drummer and bandleader Chick Webb. However, at first the group said she looked too scruffy and unattractive and they weren't going to take her. But they took a chance, and three years later, Fitzgerald rewarded him with a billboard song "A Tisket, A-Tasket," his own version of a nursery rhyme. Fitzgerald embodied this new style, she used "her voice to assume the role of another horn in the group." Impressed by his talent, arranger Benny Carter began introducing Fitzgerald to too many producers who could help him become a star. As Fitzgerald entered the jazz industry, she also entered the Harlem Renaissance, known as the "New Negro Movement." It centered around Harlem, New York, after "an artistic and social wave that introduced great new soul minds." Well-known artists such as Josephine Baker, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Count Basie brought their talents to the Harlem Renaissance and claimed that their art was an "expression of our dark-skinned selves." Singers Cole Porter and Duke Ellington loved Fitzgerald and "admired him for his talent for singing ballads and fast tunes without any practice." Thanks to the recognition she gained from Harlem artists, it allowed her to grow and become as famous, if not more so, than them. Celebrities like Tiny Bradshaw were amazed by her and gave her the chance to perform on her show. Fitzgerald took every chance she could and this was no different, now everyone knew who she was and her career took off. As Fitzgerald became established, she experimented with scat singing and "her improvisation and vocalization delighted fans". Shortly after Chick Webb's death in 1939, the group was then renamed Ella Fitzgerald and Her Famous Band. And while on tour, she met bassist Ray Brown and they eventually married and adopted their son Ray Jr. At the time, Brown was producing a tour called "Jazz at the Philharmonic," which featured famous singers from jazz such as Louis Armstrong and Cole Porter. After the tour, "singers and producers started asking her to produce songs and albums with her" and Fitzgerald remained humble through it all. But this newfound fame was accompanied by struggles against discrimination, as she had extremely strong feelings about civil rights. Fitzgerald believed in the equality of all and despised any type of discrimination. Many celebrities supported her, such as Marilyn Monroe. Who helped Fitzgerald by praising her to the press saying "Ella is ahead of her time" while urging them to go see her sing at the Mocambo, and she became the first African American to perform there. Fitzgerald also worked with a type of style known as Calypso, where the lyrics were half sung and spoken. In the era of swing dancing, most people like music with, 2008.