Turning The Tables: 8 Women Who Invented American Popular Music

The sounds you love today wouldn't exist if not for these groundbreaking women. Dive deep into their art, lives and legacies.

Chelsea Beck for NPR When NPR Music first launched Turning the Tables in 2017, we aimed to shift the narrative of music history and reshape the way we think about popular music by putting women at the forefront, starting with our list of the 150 Greatest Albums Made By Women. Last year’s 21st-century edition shifted the focus on a new generation of artists who are shaping the sound of our current moment. Today, we launched our third season of Turning the Tables, which dares to suggest a new hall of fame whose members played integral roles in inventing blues, country, gospel, jazz, rock and roll and salsa. This season pays homage to the founding mothers of music: Bessie Smith, Maybelle Carter, Billie Holiday, Marian Anderson, Ella Fitzgerald, Mary Lou Williams, Celia Cruz and Rosetta Tharpe. Beginning today and continuing throughout the next eight weeks, we’ll share annotated playlists, videos, essays, stories on air and online, plus collaborations with NPR podcasts and public radio shows that explore these women’s lives, legacies and impacts. These wide-ranging projects will paint a full picture of the groundbreaking artists you might not know as well as you should, and tell lesser-known stories about these American icons. In doing so, we want to spark a conversation about how we define greatness and whose legacies matter. “History is an ecosystem,” writes Ann Powers, co-creator of Turning the Tables in this year’s opening essay. “It needs to be nurtured and protected. With this year’s version of Turning the Tables, we hope to entice you to enter the spheres created by eight extraordinary women, to be enriched by their gifts and inspired by their stories.” You can follow along by visiting npr.org/turningthetables, where we’ll be sharing new stories nearly every day. Reshape. Remix. Represent, Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback: nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music! You received this message because you're subscribed to our NPR Music emails. |  Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy | NPR 1111 N. CAPITOL ST. NE WASHINGTON DC 20002