1998 32c Gospel Singers: Mahalia Jackson

US #3216
1998 Mahalia Jackson

• Part of set of 4 featuring Gospel Singers
• 12th installment in Legends of American Music series

Stamp Category:  Commemorative
Set:  Legends of American Music (Gospel Singers)
Value:  32¢, First Class Mail Rate
First Day of Issue:  July 15, 1998
First Day City:  New Orleans, Louisiana
Quantity Issued:  11,250,000
Printed by:  Sennett Security products
Printing Method:  Photogravure
Format:  Pane of 20
Perforations:  10.1 X 10.2

Why the stamp was issued:  This stamp is part of a set of four issued to honor Gospel Singers Mahalia Jackson, Roberta Martin, Clara Ward, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe.

About the stamp design:  Gary Kelley, a graphic designer and free-lance illustrator, was the talent behind these stamps.  He was asked to show the performers in active poses, rather than sitting still.  Kelley used pastels for the portraits, which is a medium rarely used for stamp art.

First Day City:  The stamps were issued as part of the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship’s Conference 98, held at the Superdome in New Orleans.

About the Legends of American Music Series:  The Legends of American Music Series debuted on January 8, 1993, and ran until September 21, 1999.  More than 90 artists are represented from all styles of music:  rock ‘n’ roll, rhythm and blues, country and western, jazz and pop, opera and classical, gospel and folk.  In addition to individual singers and Broadway musicals, subjects include band leaders, classical composers, Hollywood songwriters and composers, conductors, lyricists, and more.  The Legends of American Music Series was a huge advancement for diversity because it honored many Black and female artists.
Four of the most influential early gospel artists were honored on a se-tenant - the twelfth issue in the Legends of American Music Series.  Mahalia Jackson, Roberta Martin, Clara Ward, and Sister Rosetta Tharpe all performed this spiritual music with reverence and love.  They popularized gospel music for those who weren’t part of churches that sang in that style.  Many musicians added secular themes to their songs to appeal to more People.

History the stamp represents:  The best-known gospel singer in the world was Mahalia Jackson 1911-1972).  She received more acclaim than any other gospel singer, and is said to have been the vocal, physical, and spiritual symbol of religious music.
The daughter of devout Baptists, Mahalia was born in New Orleans.  Her father was a minister, and at age five, she began singing with the church choir.  She quit school in the eighth grade and in the late 1920s moved to Chicago.  There she supported herself as a maid and laundress.  Later, she operated a beauty salon and florist ship.  Mahalia cut her first record in 1937 and in 1946 signed a contract to record for Apollo Records in New York City.  Her third album released by Apollo, “Move On Up a Little Higher,” sold over one million copies.  She performed for audiences all over the country, including traveling with Tommy Dorsey from 1939 to 1944.
During the 1960s, Mahalia became associated with politics and the civil rights movement.  She performed at the 1961 inauguration of President John F. Kennedy, and was a friend and supporter of martin Luther King, Jr.  He loved her music, and she was devoted to him.  She sang at his funeral in 1968.