Throwback: Happy Belated 134th Birthday, Bessie Smith!

It’s April 2026. We’re at war with Iran. The Supreme Court is hearing arguments about birthright citizenship. The global economy is on a slow-burn collapse. Everything is awesome. Oh, and he’s still alive. 

But we still have music, friends and community, y’all. And hopefully JOVM offers a bit of respite in our mad, mad, mad world. 

So while I do focus on new music, there’s always room to celebrate our legends — both living and departed. 

• The Isley Brothers‘ co-founder Rudolph Isley was born 87 years ago on April 1
• Gil Scott-Heron was born 77 years ago on April 1
• The legendary Marvin Gaye was born 87 years ago on April 2
• Bella Union Records founder and label head, singer/songwriter, musician and Cocteau Twins‘ Simon Raymonde celebrated his 64th birthday on April 3
• Jill Scott celebrated her 54th birthday on April 4
• David Roback, one-half of acclaimed and beloved dream pop duo Mazzy Star was born 68 years ago on April 4
• The legendary  Muddy Waters was born 113 years ago on April 4
• Smash-hit producer, songwriter and artist Pharrell Williams celebrated his 53rd birthday on April 5
• Robert Glasper celebrated his 48th birthday on April 6
• Merle Haggard was born 89 years ago on April 6
• John Oates, best known for his work with the blue-eyed soul duo Hall & Oates one of the most commercially successful duos ever, celebrated his 77th birthday on April 7
• Kraftwerk co-founder Florian Schneider was born 79 years ago on April 7
• The legendary and incomparable Billie Holiday was born 111 years ago on April 7
• The legendary Biz Markie was born 62 years ago on April 8
• Kenneth “Babyface” Edmonds celebrated his 67th birthday on April 10
• A Tribe Called Quest‘s Q-Tip celebrated his 56th birthday on April 10
• The legendary and pioneering Herbie Hancock celebrated his 86th birthday on April 12
• Echo & The Bunnymen‘s Will Sergeant celebrated his 68th birthday on April 12
• The legendary Al Green celebrated his 80th birthday on April 13 
• Radiohead’s Ed O’Brien celebrated his 58th birthday on April 15
• Midnight Oil‘s frontman Peter Garrett celebrated his 73rd birthday on April 16

The Empress of the Blues, Bessie Smith was born 134 years ago on April 16. Smith was one of the most popular and beloved female blues singers of the 1930s. Often considered one of the greatest singers of her era, she was a towering influence on generation of blues and jazz vocalists. And that shouldn’t be surprising, her voice is singular and expresses bitter heartache, joy, longing, passion and ribald humor within a turn of a phrase. 

Happy birthday, Ms. Smith! Happy birthday, wherever you are! 

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The Joy of Violent Movement is a completely independent and completely D.I.Y. media outlet. Over the course of this site’s 15+ year history, I’ve used my fiercely independent stance to cover music with an eclectic and global perspective that a lot of other publications just don’t have — and will likely never have. 

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