Billie Holiday

Born into a world awash in racism and sexism, the singer Billie Holiday soon became a beloved voice, known for her unique, jazz-influenced style. But for Holiday, who was haunted by hardship in her own life, music grew to be more than entertainment. Long before the civil rights era took hold in America, Holiday recorded a song that poignantly spoke out against the brutalities of Black life in the South, a controversial protest anthem that helped inspire a movement — while deepening the singer’s personal torment. In this episode of Black History in Two Minutes (or so) hosted by Henry Louis Gates, Jr. — with additional commentary from Robert G. O’Meally of Columbia University and Imani Perry of Princeton University — we meet a bold, inimitable talent whose art fused with her activism.