Billie Holiday Archives - Rolling Out

Andra Day captured the essence of the legendary Billie Holiday in the recent Hulu release of “The United States v. Billie Holiday.” However, the famous performer revealed that she is still recovering from her role in the groundbreaking film. During an exclusive interview with Just Jared on Saturday, Feb. 27, the 36-year-old discussed the challenges…

Actress Andra Day stopped by Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay’s podcast “Higher Learning” this week to talk about her new movie, “The United States vs. Billie Holiday.” The film centers around Harry Anslinger, the former head of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, and his government-backed task force. Anslinger made it his mission to constantly harass…

As Andra Day relaxes in San Diego, California, she muses over how hard she fought not to be Billie Holiday. Suffering from extreme imposter syndrome, she did everything she could to not land the role. But God and the universe had another idea for her. Instead of running away, she completely immersed herself not only…

Grammy Award-nominated singer, songwriter, activist and actress Andra Day evokes emotion with “Tigress & Tweed,” a soul-stirring original song she wrote with Raphael Saadiq. The timely track is featured in the upcoming biopic, The United States vs. Billie Holiday, which stars Day in the lead role. Click play above to listen to the full song,…

Lee Daniels is back with his new visionary film “The United States vs. Billie Holiday.” The film, starring Andra Day, tells the story of Holiday’s battle with the federal government, which sought to stop her from singing her controversial and heart-wrenching ballad, “Strange Fruit.” The film will be released on Feb. 26, 2021, on Hulu.

When you ask Terry Burrell to describe herself, she makes your soul stir, “I am an outer expression of the Divine and an ever-evolving soul who in my earthly form is a wife, sister, auntie, friend, and an actor who sings.” A cast of 28 plus actors, singers, dancers and musicians Q Parker from the…

Since childhood, writing has always been a therapeutic outlet for Holly Charles. Whether writing music, poetry or prose, the power of language has always intrigued her and served as a way to examine parts of herself and express her innermost thoughts. After a brief career in television production, the graduate of Prairie View A&M University’s English master’s program found her…

Since hitting the scene in 1993 with their now hard to find debut album, Organix, The Roots have been one of hip-hop’s most envelope-pushing, yet consistent and bankable acts.

Today, April 7, marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Billie Holiday, born Eleanora Fagan. It is also the day that Cassandra Wilson releases the much-anticipated CD Coming Forth by Day, her extraordinary homage to Billie Holiday. There have been and will be many tributes to Holiday, some of them exceptional. But it is…

Every so often a new artist seemingly comes from out the blue to capture the hearts and ears of music lovers everywhere. British born FKA Twigs could easily be considered an artist of the above referenced nature. Though having released two EP’s, simply named EP 1 and EP 2, in 2012 and 2013, respectively, it wasn’t…

With the current national unrest regarding the George Zimmerman verdict and the murder of Trayvon Martin, we decided to look at some of the great protest songs throughout music history.

In “Sistas” the stories of five women and their family’s history are told through the popular music that provided their lives’ soundtrack.

Jazz singer Jacqui Sutton discusses the inspiration behind her third album.

Here’s a salute to those actors and actresses who got it right and those who fell a little short!

There has been a lot of debate, controversy and even acrimony over who will and should portray the larger-than-life legends Whitney Houston, Elizabeth Taylor and Lena Horne in their upcoming biopics. It’s tricky enough trying to get a look-a-like and marry that with someone with skills and believability. That is not an easy thing to…

19. Rick James 1948 – 2004 The funk legend, riding high from a rejuvenated popularity thanks to the “Dave Chappelle Show,” died of a massive heart attack at age 56 in his Los Angeles home. James had diabetes, a pacemaker and suffered a stroke in 1998. According to Reuters, the coroner listed nine drugs, including…

One day before an exclusive New York City performance, Dorothy Dandridge’s manager discovered her body.

Strange Fruit, a song performed most famously by Billie Holiday, became the national anthem for African Americans after it was recorded in 1939. This song hauntingly condemns American racism, particularly the lynching of African Americans. Loretta Lee believes so strongly in Holiday and what she represents to African American history that she pays homage to…