: All service stopped, and the room went completely dark.
: Only a single beam of light illuminated Holiday’s face as she sang. Critical Impact
Billie Holiday ’s 1939 recording of is widely considered the first great protest song of the 20th century. Originally a poem by Abel Meeropol, a white Jewish teacher from the Bronx, the song uses a haunting metaphor—fruit hanging from poplar trees—to describe the horrific reality of lynchings in the American South. The Performance: Art as Resistance
: Holiday always closed her set with it; no encore was allowed.
Holiday first performed the song at , New York’s first integrated nightclub. To ensure the message hit with full force, the club established strict rules for its performance:
