114: Gladys Bentley

Gladys Bentley was a queer black performer during the Harlem Renaissance, famous for her dapper menswear and vulgar song lyrics. She was a trailblazer for gender and sexual expression during Prohibition, and droves came to see her play piano and sing. Join Morgan and Emileigh as they discuss her life and her influence on drag and the performance arts. 

 

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Sources: 

 

“Blues Singer Gladys Bentley Broke Ground With Marriage to a Woman in 1931” by Steven J. Niven (Feb 11 2015)

https://www.theroot.com/blues-singer-gladys-bentley-broke-ground-with-marriage-1790858771

 

“Gladys Bentley in Jet Magazine” 

https://queermusicheritage.com/bentley7.html 

 

“Gladys Bentley” 

https://queerculturalcenter.org/gladys-bentley/ 

 

“Bentley, Gladys (1907-1960)” 

https://web.archive.org/web/20071103022225/http://www.glbtq.com/arts/bentley_g.html

 

“Gladys Bentley - Nominee” 

https://legacyprojectchicago.org/person/gladys-bentley

 

“Gladys Bentley” by Giovanni Russonello

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2019/obituaries/gladys-bentley-overlooked.html 

 

“Honoring Notorious Gladys Bentley” by Irene Monroe (Apr 14 2010)

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/honoring-notorious-gladys_b_459929

 

“Gladys Bentley (1907-1960) by Tisa M. Anders (Mar 28 2013)

https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/bentley-gladys-1907-1960/

 

“Women Who Paved the Way: Blues Singer Gladys Bentley” by Trudy Ring (Mar 16 2017)

https://www.advocate.com/women/2017/3/16/women-who-paved-way-blues-singer-gladys-bentley#toggle-gdpr

 

“The Great Blues Singer Gladys Bentley Broke All The Rules” by Haleema Shah (Mar 14 2019)

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/great-blues-singer-gladys-bentley-broke-rules-180971708/

 

“1923-1952 Gladys Bentley” by Ken Vegas

https://dragkinghistory.com/1923-1952-gladys-bentley/

 

“The Miraculous Masculinity of Gladys Bentley” by Eleanor Medhurst (Jun 4 2021)

https://dressingdykes.com/2021/06/04/the-miraculous-masculinity-of-gladys-bentley/ 

 

“Gladys Bentley: Pioneering Queer Performer” by Taylor Ajéwọlé Duckett 

https://picturingblackhistory.org/gladys-bentley-pioneering-queer-performer/ 

 

“Gladys Bentley” 

https://unladylike2020.com/profile/gladys-bentley/ 

Sound Credits:

Music by Julius H. from Pixabay: https://pixabay.com/music/modern-blues-heartbraker-blues-piano-blues-music-1228/ 

 

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