TAint Nobodys Bizness Queer Blues Divas of the 1920s (2013)

The 1920s saw a revolution in technology the advent of the recording industry that created the first class of AfricanAmerican women to sing their way to fame and fortune Blues divas such as Bessie Smith Ma Rainey and Alberta Hunter created and promoted a workingclass vision of blues life that provided an alternative to the Victorian gentility of middleclass manners In their lives and music blues women presented themselves as strong independent women who lived hard lives and were unapologetic about their unconventional choices in clothes recreational activities and bed partners Blues singers disseminated a Black feminism that celebrated emotional resilience and sexual pleasure no matter the source