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• Ella Fitzgerald, also known as the "First Lady of Song" and "Lady Ella," was an influential and wildly popular American jazz vocalist.

  Fitzgerald began her singing career with Chick Webb's swing band at the Savoy Ballroom in New York City. When Fitzgerald's mother passed away, Webb became her legal guardian. She began recording in 1935 and had her first bonafide hit in 1938 with "A-Tisket, A-Tasket".

  Fitzgerald embarked on a solo career in the early 40s and, with the help of Dizzy Gillespie, transitioned from swing to the newly popular bebop style. After World War II, Fitzgerland joined Norman Granz's Jazz at the Philharmonic tour on which she got to perform with Charlie Parker and Lester Young.

  In 1956, Granz signed Fitzgerald to his new Verve label. He teamed her with Duke Ellington and Count Basie's big bands and had her record "songbook" albums devoted to the works of composers like Cole Porter, Harold Arlen and George and Ira Gershwin.

  Fitzgerald received numerous awards over her lifetime including the Kennedy Center Honor, the National Medal of Arts and France's Commander of Arts and Letters.

• Fast Facts

  1. Name: Ella Jane Fitzgerald
  2. Born: April 25, 1917
  3. Birthplace: Newport News, Virginia
  4. Died: June 15, 1996
  5. Labels: Capitol, Decca, Pablo, Reprise, Verve
  6. Grammy Awards: 14

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Cole Porter | Billie Holiday | Duke Ellington | Louis Armstrong | Norah Jones | Bing Crosby | Nina Simone | Dizzy Gillespie | Etta James | Nat King Cole | Sarah Vaughan | Lizz Wright | Mad Men Soundtrack

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