FREE ESSAY ON AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSIC

AFRICAN AMERICAN MUSIC

By 1945, nearly everyone in the African American community had heard gospel music (2). At
this time, gospel music was a sacred folk music with origins in field hollers, work
songs, slave songs, Baptist lining hymns, and Negro spirituals. These songs that
influenced gospel music were adapted and reworked into expressions of praise and thanks
of the community. Although the harmonies were similar to those of the blues or hymns in
that they shared the same simplicity, the rhythm was much different. The rhythms often
times had the music with its unique accents, the speech, walk, and laughter which brought
along with it synchronized movements. (2) 
The gospel piano style was based on the rhythm section concept, where the middle of the
piano was used to support the singers. This area supported the singers by doubling the
vocal line in harmony. The bottom, left corner of the piano was used as a bass fiddle
while the upper right hand portion played the counter melodies, taking the place of a
trumpet or flute. It was the right hand corner that filled in the material during the
rhythmic breaks. Often times the text of the gospel songs portrayed meanings of the
Trinity, blessings, thanks and lamentations. The singers used the voices to communicate
their feelings about Christianity. Many singers sang through the problems and moved their
audiences, often congregations, so much so that the audience forgot their own problems
temporarily and the weights of the world were taken away through the music. (2) During
the beginning of the Golden Age of Gospel (1945-1955), gospel music reached a near
perfection and had a huge, devote audience. The call and response form in particular
flourished in the new type of music. The African American gospel song had a unique power
and ability to overcome. It was a means of transcending the listeners, singers and entire
congregation to a higher spiritual and emotional level. During the post-Civil War years,
the congregation style of singing was transformed by the new Pentecostal congregations,
also known as Holiness and Sanctified. (5)
African American gospel music was a twentieth century phenomenon which evolved through
the people that moved from rural communities to urban centers in cities. They left their
areas of limited promise and social and economic terror in hopes of starting over. (4)
Gospel was s style of repertoire and singing. The music was delivered as a high powered
spiritual force. The emphasis was placed on the vocal rhythms. Gospel music combined call
and response forms, with slow-metered , lined out protestant hymns. 
Born in 1912, Mahalia Jackson was the third of six children. Growing up in segregated,
racist times, Mahalia lived in what she called a "shotgun shack". White folks owned the
bars and grocery stores of the neighborhood. Blacks were left with the left over jobs,
often working for white families, or working on the railroad tracks. Mahalia's father
found work on the riverfront, dock towns and on the boats. On Sundays, her father worked
preaching in a Baptist church. For as hard as her parents worked, money always seemed to
be short. When Mahalia was only five years old, her mother died. Her father remarried and
acquired a whole new family with the marriage. Although she never earned any pay for her
work, Mahalia began doing chores for her Aunt Duke after school. Both sets of Mahalia's
grandparents were born into slavery and she was doomed to head the same way. When Mahalia
was in eight grade, she began to look for work outside of her aunt's chores and got a job
as a laundress. (4)
When Mahalia finally became famous, she always demanded her payments in cash, paid
up-front. The reason for her requests was because often times during her childhood years,
they never received the payments they worked hard to receive. They would often be cheated
out of their sums because plantation owners claimed that the money they earned was equal
to their fees for room and board. (1)
When Mahalia was just a small child, everyone that knew her agreed that she possessed
something special. At eight years old, she had an uncommonly large voice. Using her
talented voice both in and outside of church, she gained much praise. She of acquired a
rich range spirituals and hymns. (5)Living in New Orleans, music was all around her and
the city was filled with performing bands, pianists and various other types of musicians.
It was almost as if everyone in the city of New Orleans knew how to play a musical
instrument or sing a song. The new music was being produced for and by blacks. It because
a tradition to hire brass bands to lead the funeral parade. This is only one small
example of the good time spirit of the city. To them, they cried at the incoming of child
and rejoiced at the outgoing. Death was something that was celebrated, not feared. This
type of music played after burying the dead was called Second Line music. People would
line the curbs and the returning band and dancing crowd often times attracted many fans.
Despite the fact that someone had died, people were always happy. (1) The music meant
something to them. It was the music of their souls and it was part of the New Orleans
people and they way they did things. (3)
When Mahalia moved up North she said that a lot of people questioned her about the way
she sang religious songs. She would tell these people that she sang the songs the way she
grew up hearing them. Many people think that is sounds like jazz, but to her she knew no
different as a small child. Mahalia saw little difference between gospel and folk music.
Some people claim that since Gospel and folk songs didn't take a lot of long studying,
then they were ashamed by them. (1) They were considered simple songs of people's hearts.
People figured that if a song came from the heart then it must be too easy and should not
be considered "art", as we know it. These people's opinions angered Mahalia and she
strongly disagreed with them. She liked to sing gospel songs for herself. There were
times when she felt like she was so far from God and the gospel songs were deep and had
special meanings. They could bring back the communication and connection between oneself
and God. (2)
Mahalia first heard Bessie Smiths song, "Careless Love" when her cousin, Young Fred,
brought home the new recordings. Young Fred was Aunt Duke's son and he and Mahalia were
very close growing up. Mahalia and Fred would listen to the new recordings for hours on
Fred's phonograph, helping to ease a long, tiresome day of school and work. Outside of
Mahalia's family, the thing of next most importance in her life was her church, Mount
Moriah Baptist Church. (3) She claims that it was the foot tapping and hand clapping of
the congregation in her church that she credit for her 'bounce' of her music. She enjoyed
singing the songs, which testified the glory of the Lord. A Baptist all her life, it was
actually her adoration of the Sanctified or Holiness church that affected her life and
art. Although the Baptists had an organ and sang songs, the Sanctified Church had
cymbals, drums, strings and tambourines that went along with the beat of vigorous hand
clapping. Mahalia go so into the church music that she claims she was carried away by the
spirit and the passion that filled her as she performed literally transported her out of
herself. Mahalia always loved the church because of its powerful music. From her
experiences in the church, she grew to sing the way she does today. (1) It was the way
the preacher would sing, chant, cry, moan and shout in a groaning way that penetrated
into her and other members of the congregation's hearts. (1)
Fred, Mahalia's cousin and good friend was killed in an after-hours saloon brawl. This
was her signal that she needed to move on with her life and get out of her Aunts house
where she was abused. (1) She was ready to move out of adolescence and experience what
life had to offer for her. The music that Mahalia and Fred listened to as children,
(Dixieland music from various dance halls in their town) was music for the common people.
She was out to seek her new musical destiny on a fresh, new place. Mahalia and her Aunt
Hannah boarded the Illinois Central for a three-day trip to Chicago. The accommodations
were "separate yet equal" according to the Supreme Courts decision in 1893, yet Mahalia
and her aunt found themselves eating the food they had brought themselves since they were
not allowed in the dining room, in packed, unheated conditions. (5)
Upon arriving in Chicago, Mahalia found a job in the laundries working at a wash job.
While she dreamed of becoming a nurse, she was faced with a wash job, or the option to
work for a white family on the rich North Side. Her choices were ones of dirty, hard work
and long workdays but she knew she had no other choice. In her new home, on of her top
priorities was finding a new church. Her aunt brought her along to the Greater Salem
Baptist Church where she was warmly welcomed and became a member of their choir almost
immediately. Although she was living in poor conditions, working hard for little to no
money, she kept her faith, knowing that the Lord had his arms around her. She credits the
Depression for her whole career in gospel singing because it was these experiences that
helped shape who she was and her way of life. (3) Mahalia became a member of the Johnson
Singers, a group that sang in neighborhood churches for minimal money. Eventually this
group began to work its way up and performed as headliners for the out-of-town Baptist
conventions. Mahalia's first and last music lesson took place at the South Side music
school, by a tenor, Professor DuBois, a man of local fame. As her lesson progressed we
can see why she never wanted to return. Her teacher, Mr. DuBois, told her that she had
better stop hollering and insisted that she would have a better appeal with the white
people, who would better understand her singing. She was thoroughly insulted to say the
least and never desired another lesson. (5)
At the age of twenty-three, the year being 1935, Mahalia was still living in Chicago and
finally found the love of her life. Isaac Hockenhull, a friend from the many church
sponsored socials that she attended, was the lucky man. Isaac knew he wanted to marry
Mahalia and was convinced that she could get her voice trained so she could become a
concert artist. In 1938, the two were married and lived happily together for a few years
to come. Mahalia opened her own business as a hairdresser and soon expanded to sell
cosmetics. (1) Next, she added a floral shop to her list and they were doing very well
financially. Ike was still convinced that Mahalia needed to take her vocal talents one
step further and convinced her to meet with Madame Anita Patty Brown, who had once been
an opera singer and was a celebrated voice of the South Side. Although the lesson went
well, Mahalia had her mind set on singing gospel and she disregarded Ikes input if it
suggested anything different. While taking voice lessons from Madame Brown, Mahalia was
also working with Thomas Dorsey, the choirmaster for many of the Baptist churches in
Chicago and the leading gospel composer. Ike presented Mahalia with another opportunity.
He had heard that the Federal Theater project was in the area and they were casting a
production called "The Hot Mikado". Mahalia auditioned and won a leading role but refused
the job. Things between Ike and Mahalia began to worsen and they were beginning to come
apart over gospel singing. Ike had a gambling problem, which didn't help their
relationship, and they separated and eventually got a divorce, continuing to remain
friends. (4)
In 1933, Mahalia was given the opportunity to return to New Orleans and visit her family.
When attending a tent show back home in Greenville, she met the acquaintance of an
eight-year-old boy named John Sellers. She was very impressed with his talents and they
two remained friends. John would often stop by randomly to visit Mahalia and he turned
toward Mahalia as a role model. Living with his Aunt Carrie, John got kicked out of the
house over a disagreement and moved in with Mahalia was said that her home was his home.
An opportunity knocked on Mahalia's door when he was offered a job working for a family
in a small South Side apartment. (5)This family, the MacIvers, employed John and gave him
his own apartment and five dollars a week. Still staying in touch with Mahalia, John
attended church with her one Sunday afternoon and joined her in singing. John Sellers
quickly became known as "Brother John" in the church circle and his relationship with
Mahalia began to slip away. (3)
In Mahalias first performing days in Chicago, many of the ministers rejected her. They
claimed that Mahalia had a tendency to shake and twist about which were movements, which
were inappropriate for the pulpit. She agreed to their conditions to wear suitable
clothing/robes and concealed her vaulting feelings. (1)
Right after V-J Day, Louis Terkel, a well-known Chicago raconteur, started a radio
program he called "The Wax Museum" on the station WENR. Terkel was the first to introduce
black entertainers and ethnic music on the white airwaves of Chicago. He played the
recording of "I'm Goin to Tell God All About It" on his 78 record. He asked Mahalia
Jackson to come on his show for an interview and she agreed. Her airtime introduced her
to the world beyond her church community. Mahalia's call and response, give and take, and
her body, hand and foot movements were mesmerizing. Her radio appearances brought a new
beat, a musical stirring to white ears that they had never heard before. She surprised
her audience with a celebratory life force and a segregated healing sound that had
sustained black people in their anguish and acted as a separator from the mainstream of
American life. The sounds that Mahalia could create so magnificently helped white embrace
gospel for the first time, as they had already accepted jazz and blues. (1)
In 1946 Mahalia met the acquaintance of Bess Berman, a woman of New York in the recording
business. Bess fell in love with Mahalia's gospel voice and signed her for a recording
contract. She promised Mahalia $10,000 a year but her music was not being accepted as
well as they had hoped. Bess allowed Mahalia one more chance to revive the interest of
the listeners. Mahalia was determined that she could add her own unique swinging style to
a song by Reverend Brewster, called "Move On Up a Little Higher", a song that had not
moved far out of the black church circle. Her idea proved to be extremely successful and
produced royalties of over $300,000 for Mahalia in the first year alone. Mahalia was
unaware the a woman by the name of Rosetta Tharp was a competitor of hers in the gospel
field and had a contract previous to hers with Jukebox Berman. Tharp's contract included
veto power on any gospel competitor that Berman might want to sign. Mahalia was outraged
but was forced to stop recording any jukebox numbers. That was not the last that Mahalia
heard from Rosetta. The Golden Gate in Harlem was redesigned to an auditorium and became
the mecca for gospel and jazz. Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Rosetta Tharp, and Mahalia
Jackson were star performers. (1)
In 1951, Joe Bostic, Mahalia's church agent decided to take a very big gamble. He wanted
to expand his horizons for his gospel clients and rented Carnegie Hall. This gamble
turned out to be a great success and every seat sold out! That evening broke all house
records, including the ones set by Toscanini and Benny Goodman. By 1955, Mahalia was no
longer working with Bess Berman's Apollo Records, but had moved on to Columbia Records.
Columbia Records called Mahalia "the worlds greatest gospel singer". (2)
Working along side of Mahalia and also deserving much recognition is Mildred Falls,
Mahalia's pianist and organist. In the summer of 1951, Mahalia and Mildred were invited
to attend the Music Inn, a prestigious summer school of the Greenwich community as guests
of Marshall Stearns, the Inn's creator. Stearns knew Mahalia's recordings from Apollo
Records very well and invited the two to spend the weekend in the jazz "think tank".
Mahalia strongly believed that every man and woman needed something to believe in,
something they could look up to. For Mahalia, it was the gospel that she believed in and
it was the gospel that uplifted her. She saw nothing wrong with selling the gospel in the
market place as long as it was pure and untainted. (4) Beginning in the mid-1930's vocal
ministers and board members of black churches opposed, resented and were horrified of the
decent of gospel songs into wide popularity. Mahalia did what came natural to her and
gained great fame through her unique style. Although she broke every rule of concert
singing from breathing in the middle of a word and garbling words together, her full
throated feelings and expressions made up the difference! While at the Music Inn, Hammond
sought out Mahalia and wished to talk to her about her recording future. Representing
Columbia, he reminded Mahalia that her current contract with Bess Berman was under shaky
conditions, considering that Bess was under financial stress. Columbia offered Mahalia
more money then Bess in the future. In 1952, the agreement between Mahalia and Bess began
to shatter. At this point, Mahalia picked up the phone and called Mitch Miller, the
contract negotiator for Columbia and asked that he send her a contract. Although she did
not jump to sign the contract when it arrived, on Easter Sunday night, Mahalia felt that
she had received a sign from god and signed the contract immediately. (5) 
A friend of Mahalia's, Stern Terkel, took on a position working at the CBS radio show in
1954, when Mahalia learned that the show needed a staff writer. CBS did not support the
idea of having Terkel work for them but they agreed to Mahalia's requests as long as they
both understood that his name would not appear in the program credits or advertising. For
twenty weeks, the Mahalia Jackson Show ran on television for a half-hour each episode.
Beginning in September 1954, the show did not last very long. Mahalia's show featured her
singing traditional gospels and spirituals with a few miscellaneous songs but the show
was missing a major component. (2) The show was in need of a sponsor and began to go out
of business. The show went from thirty minutes airtime to ten minutes and eventually
ended in February 1955. This was not the end of Mahalia's television appearances however.
The TV station, WBBM-TV of Chicago asked Mahalia to be a guest on their program, "In Town
Tonight". This pleased her very much because until that point, neither she nor any other
black entertainers had been sought after by networks. She once again asked that her
friend Terkel be employed as writer of the TV show when she appeared. They agreed to her
requests but once again declared that Terkel would have to remain anonymous. While with
Columbia, George Avakian was assigned to be Mahalia's artist and repertoire man. (5)
When Mahalia performed time was a key element to her. She wanted to make sure she had
enough time to leave the audience with her intended message. Mahalia became annoyed with
the television and radio broadcasters because she claimed that the first thing they
wanted to do was to rush her and start warning her of her time limits. "Before you knew
it, they'd start cutting you off", she claimed. To her, real gospel singing was more then
just entertainment. She stressed her desire to get a message in people's heads and did
not want to be rushed. She was starting to make good money and felt that people show
respect her and listen to her requests. These were her five years of her ascendancy into
the white music market. (1)
In between concerts and broadcasts, Mahalia could be found with Mildred and her cousin
John Stevens, who drove the ladies around in Mahalia's purple Cadillac. Mahalia remembers
the difficulties they went through as they traveled and they harsh prejudices they faced.
She can recall a time when they couldn't find a single place to eat or sleep along the
major highways. People refused to serve them because of their skin color. Some gasoline
stations even refused to sell them gas, making their journeys very difficult. In the
pre-civil war days, black-touring companies were in fierce competition. It was a
tradition for them to request their payments in cash at the conclusion of the program.
They musicians and performers were forced to guard their earnings with their dear life.
They often their money in their shoes or undergarments. Living conditions during
Mahalia's time were difficult and due to the circumstances listed above, she often found
herself sleeping in her car alongside the road. Police rarely ever showed respect towards
anyone of color. Racism flew like mad. (1)
In 1955, Rosa Parks, a seamstress from Montgomery, Alabama, boarded the bus as usual but
proceeded to take the first available seat in the front section, which by law was
reserved for whites. When asked to, Rosa refused to give up her seat and she was arrested
and briefly jailed. In 1956 Mahalia was visited by Reverend Ralph Abernathy, a colleague
of Martin Luther Kings. Reverend Abernathy explained that the St. John A.M.E. Church in
Montgomery was planning on honoring Ms. Parks and they wanted Mahalia to participate by
playing a bracing musical interlude. She agreed and was a huge success. 
In 1957, Mahalia had saved enough money to purchase of home of her very own. She bought a
single level house with a small garage in Indiana Avenue, which was mostly a white
neighborhood in the South Side of Chicago. Unfortunately with her choice of locations,
Mahalia faced severe discrimination once again. An unidentified person fired air-rifle
pellets into her front window. This was only once incident in the rising tide of racism.
(1)
Once again, another opportunity opened up for Mahalia to go on television. Dinah Shore, a
top TV personality of the day, insisted that her network, CBS enter into a contract with
Mahalia, having her appear on the "Dinah Shore Show". Mahalia agreed and was quite
pleased with her wide reception. This TV appearance brought along with it numerous
opportunities for Mahalia. Columbia offered new recording dates, numerous TV guests
shots, and various nightclubs offers. (2)
In 1958, Douglas Sirk directed the film Imitation of Life, and asked Mahalia to be a part
of this movie. Mahalia agreed and played the part of Louise Beaver, a happy "colored"
servant. After this films release, Mahalia made a guest appearance on TV with Bing Crosby
and Dean Martin. She was in the business big time and was making big money. The fame and
success she had always dreamed of was becoming a reality. (4)
The call and response gospel style was Mahalia's signature and Mildred never lost her way
with that style. Without Mildred's blues chords, triplets and four-four bouncing,
Mahalia's art would have been much weaker. Mildred have Mahalia the latitude she needed
along with the freedom to adlib new lyrics, break time and alter the melodies in the heat
of building the meaning of the song. Unfortunately, the conditions under which Mildred
worked for Mahalia were poor. (1) Mahalia tended to be cautious with her money and
severely underpaid Mildred considering all she did for her. When Mildred got up the nerve
to ask for a raise so she could afford to live in a motel and eat out, Mahalia fired her.
When Mahalia had money, no one could talk to her and she would close out anything and
everything that she didn't want to get involved with. (1)
Good news came for Mahalia when George Avakian and his wife asked her to participate in a
New York concert that would be performed in the Town Hall. Gospel songs and spirituals
were considered serious and sacred music for the black church congregation. The "blues"
were often considered sinful since they were secular with origins from the streets,
alleys and barrelhouses. Brother John Sellers grew up in the Mississippi River towns and
was exposed to gospel, blues, and eventually jazz. He loved these aspects of music and
decided to cut his dependency with Mahalia Jackson. (2)
In 1953, John Hammond was making a name for himself and was drafted by Maynard and
Seymour Solomon, the producers of Vanguard Records. Before John took off, playing in
concerts in Canada and Europe, John recorded two albums with them. Big Bill gave John an
open invitation to when the time came for him to separate from Mahalia. By 1958, John
took Bill up on his offer and joined him willingly. By 1955, Big Bill had achieved
celebrity status in England; he introduced Mahalia to the audiences in the Albert Hall.
Mahalia joined Bill on his program of blues and jazz. London's first response to
Mahalia's gospel music was cold and bitter due to the fact that they were a stiff-baked
audience and her performance was filled with melancholy. Mahalia, not accepting rejection
well, left England and went to Scandinavia where the audience widely received her
talents. (1) Brother John returned to New York where he helped launch a new nightclub
called Gerde's Folk City. Students everywhere found enjoyment in hanging out in
nightclubs where drinks and entertainment was cheap and they could enjoy the roots of
music in jazz, folk and blues. Brother John performed regularly at the nightclub, Folk
City, for a few seasons. The blues music was popular but Mahalia refused to perform it
herself, sticking to her gospel music. (3)
Mahalia had gained an acquaintance, Martin Luther King, from when she supported the
efforts in Montgomery. Mahalia loved to listen to what King had to say and saw her voice
as a weapon for change. In May 1957, Mahalia sang at the Christian Leadership Conference
held at Lincoln Memorial in Washington D.C. The time for compromise was over. In May
1954, the Supreme Court decided to act on the case known as Brown et al. V. United
States, dealing with the reconsideration of the Fourteenth Amendment. For the first time
in history, segregation was declared unequal, unfair and undemocratic. The community
would no longer face "separate but equal" facilities. Progression was underway, or so it
seemed. Race relations collapsed in Birmingham. The three principal black leaders, King,
Shuttlesworth, and Abernathy began the morning of April 12, 1963 in leading a protest
march. These three leaders were arrested and jailed as a result. Disruptions continued as
four little black girls were killed and fourteen others were wounded as the children
attended a bible class in Birmingham. In mid-June, three college youths, 2 white students
and one black, were found, executed Klan style. It was following this incident in 1988
that Alan Parker produced the film, Mississippi Burning, in which Mahalia Jackson
recording of "Take My Hand, Precious Lord" was the opening theme for the soundtrack and
was under the main credit for the film. The trouble continued. On February 21, 1965,
Malcolm X, a Black Nationalist, was shot point blank by three men in his audience. As you
can see, Mahalia moved through an illicit world of race, politics and commerce. Mahalia
believed that too many people were dragging their feet and she was filled with anxiety.
(1)
In August 1963, the White House lawn was covered with swarms of people who had taken the
day off from being mean to each other. It was a nation of people marching together.
Mahalia joined Martin Luther King for his speech as she sang "I Been Buked and I Been
Scorned". For King, this song gave meaning and explanation behind why so many blacks had
made such a great personal sacrifice. When Mahalia worked with King, she saw herself
playing a role in changing America. King enriched Mahalia and encouraged her to become
more politically involved and make her voice be heard. She acquired responsibility beyond
her image as a gospel singer. She definitely lived a very full life.(2)
On November 22, 1963, the nation watched in amazement, as one or more sharpshooters
gunned down the President. Mahalia felt it was her duty to perform on TV for this sad
occasion and sang "Nearer My God to Thee". At this point, Mahalia was fifty-one and her
health began to be undermined. Mahalia traveled abroad from Europe to the Middle East,
Egypt, Lebanon, Syria and finally Israel, the Holy Land. Some of her final trips included
India, Japan and Europe once more. When she returned home, Columbia records began to
worry about her health and scheduled multiple recording sessions figuring the day was
nearing when she would become too sick to continue recording. The world was changing
along with many people's views. Martin Luther King called upon Mahalia when he was in
need of help. He knew that Mahalia had a strong alliance with Chicago City Hall and Mayor
Daley and he wished to make an appearance with the help of Mahalia's connections in
Chicago. This event was set for May 27. By 1968, President Johnson's "Great Society" was
falling apart. The thoughts that ran through Kings head at this time would make one
consider him a dangerous man. 1968 was a double nightmare with the double political
assignation. On April 3rd, Dr. King spoke to his audience at the pulpit in Memphis at the
Mason Temple. The night that followed, King was speaking to his followers on the balcony
of the Lorraine motel when he was gunned down by a rifle shot from the building across
the street. The assassin was a thirty nine-year-old man who succeeded in killing King. On
the day of Kings death, Mahalia was working with a friend, Jean Childers, on planning
their chicken franchise business. Shocked and saddened, people were left wondering, what
next? This was not the end. On June 4th, 1968, Senator Robert Kennedy was the next victim
of being gunned down by an assassin's bullet. The country feared that an organized
conspiracy existed. Mahalia pulled herself together and once again went on broadcast on
CBS television in memorial of Robert Kennedy. (1)
Mahalia realized her lonesomeness and had a healthy appreciation for the male sex. She
needed a companion and that was going to be her next project. While singing for the
church in Gary, Indiana, Mahalia met the Galloway family and immediately set her eye on
the husband, Sigmund. Although he had a wife and daughter at the time, his wife died a
few years later and his daughter left to live with an aunt. In 1964, Mahalia and Sigmund
were married in Mahalia's living room. Again, this marriage did not last and Sigmund
claimed that Mahalia was too demanding, controlling and commanding and no man would ever
be able to please her! Mahalia moved out to a small place on Lake Shore and the divorce
was finalized in 1967. Mahalia got whatever she wanted. In the year that followed the
divorce, Mahalia's excitement came when she received an invitation to perform in New
York's Lincoln Center in a concert called "Salute to Black Women." (1)
Mahalia first became acquainted with Benjamin L. Hooks, as he was her preacher. Benjamin
recalls that Mahalia was battered and mistreated and she was so used to it that she had
come to expect it. Many times she had been deceived, tricked and duped out of money that
she worked hard to earn. She began to mistrust people and got to the point where she
would demand payments before the second half of the programs. He demanded only cash, due
in her hand. (2)
Back to Mahalia's plans with Jean Childer, they started the Mahalia Jackson Chicken
System in 1967. During this time, there were no franchise companies in the south that
supported the idea of doing business with a black person. When Mahalia accepted their
plan, the Hooker brothers agreed to work with Ben Hooks and Watts on this project. At
this point, Mahalia was among the best known names in the black society. Six months
later, the firm opened its first store in Memphis and Mahalia made a triumph appearance.
Hooks and Watts added another company to their subsidiary, calling it the "Mahalia
Jackson Food System". This company produced over twenty-five varieties of foods, ranging
from peas to beans and corn. Working with the A&P Canning Company, millions of labels on
cans of vegetable and fruits were changed to bear Mahalia's name and her picture on the
front. A year after Mahalia's death, the company went bankrupt but had had many years of
great success. (1)
Although no one was ever able to duplicate Mahalia's style exactly, many certainly tried.
She held onto the notes for a longtime and changed the voice to a falsetto. Its been done
before and certainly copied a number of times but none were as successful as Mahalia.
Mahalia would forever have lifetime identification with the old-time Sanctified Baptist
Church services. Mahalia still refused to go into the secular world but there was no need
since she was making all of the money she needed. Mahalia never lowered her standards in
terms of what she believed in. People say that formal voice training could have ruined
Mahalia since she had such a unique style of her own. (5)
By 1967, Mahalia had moved out of her small home to a double condo where she lived with
Brother John. She fired her life long black law firm in Chicago and shocked everyone,
informing them that she wanted all of her business transferred over to Eugene Shapiro, a
young Chicago lawyer. This was the same year the Mahalia began to fight depression and
her health began to be jeopardized. The stress of her busy schedule was beginning to take
its toll on her physically. (1) Mahalia's life long dream was to become a preacher in her
own temple. When she arrived on the South Side of Chicago, she immediately idolized Elder
Lucy Smith. Although Smith could not read or write, she had an incredible gift of
persuasion. Mahalia loved Smith's dynamic presumptions and the public work she did for
the poorer communities. As Mahalia aged, she overcame her shyness and nothing held her
back from approaching people, both black and white for whatever she wanted. Although
Mahalia saw success during her lifetime and much fame and fortune came her way, but she
never saw all of the fruit of her hard work. Mahalia had temple plans of her own and she
would not be settled until they were complete. She made a donation to have her plans
become a reality and that's just what happened. She wanted to create a monument to her
brothers and sisters who had come both before her and would proceed her. They, like
herself had journeyed to the Promised Land. (5)
On January 27, 1972, Mahalia Jackson died of a heart seizure at the age of sixty. She had
worked too hard and had burned her heart out. Her death marked the eclipse of the
gospel's golden age. Mahalia's works possessed a magical elixir that most of her
competitors had been denied. Funeral services were held at the Arie Crown Theater. The
coffin was then transported back to her home in New Orleans. Following the traditional
funeral services, the procession reformed at the grave and then the joy began. Bands
roared tones of gospel music. For them, they saw Mahalia's death as a step toward her
long journey up the glory road. (4) 
Mahalias life had been run by money. She had agreed that money changes people. Her
friend, Brother John warned her that she was living too high and must come down but her
fortune was much too important to her. Mahalia believed that people had the money she
demanded and if they didn't, they would find it if they wanted to enjoy her services. She
was wrestling with the two Mahalia's inside herself. The powerful, public one had fits of
anger, ruthlessness and times of unthinking. The other was extremely lonely and spending
hours on the phone with her ex husband. Inside she was a scared woman who was seeking a
close companion. (3)
In June 1975, a film entitled "Kinfolks" documented the life and music of Mahalia
Jackson. Her art was her work; her work was her art. (1)
Bibliography
Encarta Encyclopedia, 1999