Bili Holidej: Od kraljice bluza do nesrećne Ledi Dej

Bila je kraljica bluza, jedna od najuticajnijih pevačica svih vremena, poznatao pod nadimkom Ledi Dej... Bili Holidej, žena božanstvenog glasa i tužne sudbine.

In May of 1948, Billie played the Ebony Club at 1678 Broadway in New York City, being managed by John Levy. She went on a four week run, which somehow happened despite her lack of a cabaret card. Before long he was handling her business matters. In July of 1948, Levy booked Billie for a strenuous six-week run at Broadway’s Strand Theatre. Five shows a day, seven days a week. She headlined with the Basie band, comics Stump & Stumpy, dancers the Two Zephyrs, and Humphrey Bogart starring in Key Largo. #BillieHoliday #LadyDay #EleanoraFagan #Jazz #Blues #JazzClub #Music #Soul #Singer #Legend #ForTheLoveOfLadyDay

A post shared by Billie Holiday (@billie.holiday) on May 1, 2015 at 4:38pm PDT

Život je nije mazio, a sa samo deset godina silovao ju je komšija. Živela je u siromašnom kvartu s majkom koja ju je rodila kao tinejdžerka, a nedugo zatim poslala je u internat poznat po brutalnom kažnjavanju.

- Godinama sam sanjala o svim užasima koji su me zadesili i budila sam se vrišteći. Trebale su mi godine da to ostavim iza sebe - napisala je u svojoj autobiografiji.

Lady Day's reedy, melancholy voice captures the essence of the Blues unlike any other vocalist before and after.She did more than just hit the notes. An absolute marvel at interpretation of music. She possessed a rare gift to express intense emotion behind the song lyrics, both joy and often sorrow. Her ability, quite special and unique, stemmed from her range of life experiences. #BillieHoliday #LadyDay #EleanoraFagan #Jazz #Blues #Music #Soul #ForTheLoveOfLadyDay #Songstress #Timeless #Beauty #Legend ???

A post shared by Billie Holiday (@billie.holiday) on Apr 25, 2015 at 8:16pm PDT

Godine 1928. preselila se u Njujork gde je sa samo četrnaest godina doživela drugo silovanje, nakon čega se okrenula prostituciji, a ubrzo je bila i uhapšena.

Nakon izlaska iz zatvora dobila je prvu angažman i to potpuno neočekivano. Naime, prijavila se za posao plesačice u jednom klubu, ali joj je vlasnik rekao da nije dovoljno dobra. Ipak, dopustio joj je da otpeva nekoliko pesama.

Today in the history of Lady Day,marks the anniversary of one of her most famous live recordings,"Fine and Mellow". "Fine and Mellow" is a jazz standard in the genre,written by Billie, who first recorded it on April 20, 1939. It is a song detailing the bad treatment of a woman at the hands of man. The  song was famously performed by Billie in 1957 in a television special, The Sound Of Jazz. The one-hour program aired on Sunday, December 8, 1957, live from CBS Studio 58, the Town Theater at 851 Ninth Avenue in New York City. The show's performance of "Fine and Mellow" reunited Billie with her estranged long-time friend Lester Young for the final time. ?

A post shared by Billie Holiday (@billie.holiday) on Dec 8, 2014 at 3:18pm PST

- Gosti su tada zaboravili na piće - rekla je Bili koja se proslavila svojim jedinstvenim glasom.

Veliki muzičari otkrili su je 1933, ali se tokom nastupanja u Americi suočila sa rasnom diskriminacijom. Na jednom nastupu u Detroitu naterali su je da zacrni lice da je, zbog njene svetle puti, neko ne bi pomislio da je belkinja.

"Billie was in her teens singing songs all night long at Harlem Uproar House when songwriter Bernie Hanighen brought her to Brunswick studios and first recorded her with pickup bands that included such people as Jack and Charlie Teogarden,Benny Goodman,Artie Shaw,E6ddie Condon, and Teddy Wilson. Her unusual singing style featured on numbers like "The Man I Love" made her a jazz institution. These days Billie is singing songs out of the sound stages of Hollywood Hal Ranch studio. As usual her accompaniment is superb. The picture she's making is New Orleans. Louis Armstrong is playing the trumpet." (Picture and article taken from Esquire's Year Book issue in 1947)?

A post shared by Billie Holiday (@billie.holiday) on Oct 10, 2014 at 4:39pm PDT

Četrdesetih godina počela je mnogo da pije, a njen suprug, Džimi Monro uveo ju je u svet heroina pa je zaradu uglavnom trošila na drogu. 1947. je uhapšena zbog posedovanja heroina i deset meseci je bila u federalnom zatvoru nakon čega joj je zabranjeno da nastupa u noćnim klubovima koji su joj i donosili zaradu. Drugo hapšenje usledilo je 1940. u San Francisku.

Život kakav je vodila muzička diva uništavao je na sve načine. Nakon razvoda od Monroa zaljubila se u dilera, ali zatim i u mafijaša koji se koristio njenim imenom za svoje prljave poslove.

"Miss Holiday set a pattern during her most fruitful years that has proved more influential than that of almost any other jazz singer, except the two who inspired her, Louis Armstrong and the late Bessie Smith."? -New York Times,July 18th 1959

A post shared by Billie Holiday (@billie.holiday) on Jun 12, 2014 at 5:20pm PDT

Pedesetih je već izgubila glas i poslednje dve godine života provela je izgubljena u alkoholu i drogi. Godine 1959. primljena je u bolnicu zbog problema sa jetrom i srcem, a tada su je ponovo uhapsili i ispred njene bolničke sobe postavili su čuvare.

Legendarna pevačica umrla je 17. jula i u trenutku smrti imala je 750 dolara pričvršćenih za nogu i 75 centi na bankovnom računu. Imala je 44 godine.