Clara Smith

Clara Smith became a hit blues singer in the 1920's when she left South Carolina and settled in Harlem during the great migration. Clara was known as the "Queen of the Moaners." She recorded a song in 1925 with her rival, Bessie Smith, who she described as her "sister" even though they were not related. In the song, they pretended to be competing with each other for the affections of the same man.

Clara Smith was born in 1894 in Spartanburg, SC. Growing up in the south was not easy for an African American in that time. She faced much racism and endured economic struggles. To escape these conditions, Clara Smith became a part of The Great Migration in which 7 million African Americans fled the south and moved to the north, mid-west and west between 1910 and 1970. She carried memories of her life in the south with her when she left, and her earlier life experiences always informed her music. Her years of personal struggle are reflected in her emotionally raw performances, certainly an example of "artistic lemonade.” In 1935, at the young age of 40, Clara Smith died of heart failure. She had been actively performing up until her death.

This article's permanent location is
http://www.artistic-lemonade.com/archive/008.htm

Links: 

• Smith's profile on the University of South Carolina's Center for Southern African-American Music
• Clara Smith on Red Hot Jazz
• Smith's song "Don't Advertise Your Man" on Archive.org
• Clara Smith's department at our Lemonade Stand