SPEAKER_01: This Pride Month, Womanaka is brought to you exclusively by Mercedes-Benz. Together, we're honoring people who've expanded the norms of gender and sexuality in the performing arts. Mercedes-Benz embraces the freedom of individual expression and continues to support and stand with the LGBTQIA Plus community. Listen all month long as we share stories of proud individuals whose authentic expression in their lives and bodies of work have challenged norms, driving society forward. Hello, from Wonder Media Network, I'm Jenny Kaplan and this is Womanaka. Happy Pride Month. This June, we're featuring the stories of queer stars of stage and screen. Women who expanded the norms of gender and sexuality in the limelight and behind the scenes. Today we're talking about one of the big three of the blues. But this performer didn't just sing the blues, she sang the dirty blues. She's infamous for writing some of the most sexually explicit blues songs ever committed to record. Let's talk about Lucille Bogan. Lucille Bogan was born Lucille Anderson on April 1, 1879 in Monroe County, Mississippi. Little is known about her early life, other than the fact that her family relocated to Birmingham, Alabama. In the late 1910s, Lucille met and married Nazareth Lee Bogan. The couple had one son together. Over the next few years, Lucille grew in the Birmingham blues scene. By 1923, she was signed by OK Records and recorded her first record, Lonesome Daddy Blues in New York City. Later that year, she recorded Pawnshop Blues in Atlanta, making her the first blues artist to record outside of New York or Chicago. Lucille had her first big hit with her song, Sweet Petunia. While many of Lucille's early pieces had the word blues in the title, her style was more like the vaudeville performances of the 1920s, with hints of ragtime and black folk music. Over time, Lucille's voice deepened and her lyrics became more explicit. Lucille cut her teeth performing at rowdy juke joints. Over time, she stopped using her real name and began recording under the name Bessie Jackson. But that persona, her lyrical content focused on drinking and sex. She released songs like Sloppy Drunk Blues and Tricks Ain't Walkin' No More, which were covered by Memphis Minnie, who we've previously featured on this show. She also recorded the original version of Black Angel Blues, which was later covered by blues legend B.B. King. Lucille's most explicit song was the infamous Shave Em Dry. The lyrics to the song were so raunchy, she recorded two versions, one clean and one dirty. The clean version of the song contained double entendres similar to her past lyrics. The dirty version, which legend has it was never actually meant for the public, gave listeners a front row seat to what Lucille would sing at the rowdy juke joints of the day. Shave Em Dry was a huge hit, and was even referenced in the Rolling Stones song Start Me Up. Lucille's racy lyrics matched her love life. She had numerous affairs with both men and women. She was even rumored to have had an affair with her pianist Will Azell. She sang about her relationships with women in songs like BD Woman's Blues, which featured lyrics such as Come at a time, BD women, they ain't gonna need no men They got ahead like a sweet angel and they walked just like a natural man Lucille returned to Birmingham in 1935 after being dropped by her record label. She never recorded another song. In her later years, she managed her son's jazz ensemble, Bogan's Birmingham Busters, and followed him to Los Angeles. She passed away in 1948 from heart disease at the age of 51. Today, Lucille is still remembered and revered for her infamous lyrics. This year, in 2022, she was finally inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame. All month, we're highlighting queer stars of the stage and screen. For more information, check us out on Facebook and Instagram at Womanica Podcast. Special thanks to Liz Kaplan, my favorite sister and co-creator. As always, we'll be taking a break for the weekend. Talk to you on Monday.
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