October 26 …

Twentieth century vocalist and recording artist Mahalia Jackson — known as the Queen of Gospel — is revered as one of the greatest musical figures in American history.

Listen to her story:

Jackson was born October 26, 1911 in New Orleans, but as a teen moved to Chicago intending to study nursing. After joining Greater Salem Baptist Church, she began singing with their Johnson Gospel Singers, and eventually with Thomas A. Dorsey, the gospel composer. Touring across the country with Dorsey’s gospel tour in the 1930s brought her wide public exposure. Audiences resonated with songs like “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” and “I Can Put My Trust in Jesus.”

In 1934, Jackson made her first recording, “God Gonna Separate the Wheat from the Tares,” followed by a series of others including her first big hit, “Move on Up a Little Higher,”< in 1945. Eight of her records sold more than a million copies each.

While Jackson’s tunes were strongly influenced by the harmonies, rhythms, and emotional force of blues, her music was strictly Christian gospel, with texts drawn from biblical themes. She refused to sing anything but religious songs or to sing in any surroundings she considered inappropriate. She embraced modern telecommunications, readily performing on radio and television and, starting in 1950s, appearing to overflow audiences in annual concerts at Carnegie Hall in New York City.

Jackson was enormously popular outside the United States. Her version of “Silent Night,” for example, was one of the all-time best-selling records in Denmark. She made a notable appearance at the Newport (Rhode Island) Jazz Festival in 1957 — in a program devoted entirely, at her request, to gospel songs — and she sang at the inauguration of President John F. Kennedy in January 1961.

In the 1950s and ’60s, Jackson was active in the Civil Rights Movement. She made history in 1963, singing the old African American spiritual “I Been ’Buked and I Been Scorned” for a crowd estimated at 250,000 at the March On Washington. She appeared just before civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his famous “I Have a Dream” speech.

Widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, Mahalia Jackson died on January 27, 1972 at age 60.

Selected Sources:

• The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Mahalia Jackson.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 March 2025.
• Biography.com Editors. “Mahalia Jackson Biography.” 2 April 2014.