Уилли Мэй Форд Смит: Американдық Евангелие әншісінің өмірі мен шығармашылығы

American gospel singer (1904–1994)

Willie Mae Ford Smith (June 23, 1904 – February 2, 1994) was an American musician and Christian evangelist instrumental in the development and spread of gospel music in the United States. She grew up singing with her family, joining a quartet with her sisters. Later she became acquainted with Thomas A. Dorsey, the "Father of Gospel Music", when he co founded the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses in 1932. Smith started the St. Louis chapter and became the director of the national organization's Soloist's Bureau, training up and coming singers in the gospel blues style. She became known for her nurturing temperament, leading to her commonly being called "Mother Smith" by those within her musical circle. For a decade she traveled ceaselessly tutoring, singing, and preaching in churches and at revivals. Her appearances were renowned for being intensely moving spiritual experiences. A devout Christian, she rejected commercializing gospel music throughout her life, even during gospel's "golden age". Smith chose to perform live and on the radio rather than record. She was ordained as a minister and preached at a church in St. Louis, Missouri, for 30 years. However, not until the 1980s did she become known to mainstream audiences. She was the primary focus of the 1982 documentary film Say Amen, Somebody, about gospel singers in the U. S. Author Anthony Heilbut states, "her admirers and protégés are legion. This is simply the most influential female gospel singer of all time, and in the opinion of many, many fans, the greatest."

Born in Rolling Fork, Mississippi, Willie Mae was the seventh of fourteen children of Clarence Ford, a railroad brakeman, and Mary Williams. Soon after she was born, her family relocated to Memphis, Tennessee for her father's work. Willie Mae became familiar with blues from hearing it coming from a disreputable clubhouse adjacent to her family's Memphis back yard when she was still a toddler. Bar patrons tossed coins to hear her sing "Boll Weevil". The Fords moved to St. Louis, Missouri in 1917, and Mary started a restaurant where Willie Mae worked after dropping out of school in the eighth grade. Her parents were devout Christians, her father a deacon in their church. They fostered a love of singing, eventually encouraging Willie Mae and her sisters Mary, Emma, and Geneva to perform at their local church, True Light. They enjoyed it so much they formed a singing quartet called the Ford Sisters. Their reception at events, including the 1922 National Baptist Convention, was lukewarm. In the early 20th century, music at urban black churches throughout the U. S. was formal and refined. Choirs performed sophisticated material from classical European composers, like Handel and Mozart, more to show their musical abilities than reiterate a spiritual message through music. Personalizing songs by improvising with melody, lyrics, and rhythm was generally not tolerated under the belief that it was common and undignified. In this light, Smith later said that the National Baptist Convention "hadn't really accepted gospel".