Odetta

Odetta was one of the defining voices of American folk music. Though she had been trained in classical music, she was drawn to spirituals, work songs, traditional ballads, and blues. These songs told the stories of true life - of struggle and of those that overcame oppression. Odetta used her theater training and deep resonant voice to bring these messages to life. Her work inspired later artists like Bob Dylan and Joan Baez, served as a soundtrack for the social reforms of the 1960s, and led to her honorary title as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement."

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