Uploaded November 2024 | Updated September 2026, 1 day ago
Dive Into the Archive: leftofblack.org
Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thorton was a discarded icon of the era that ushered in American rock n’ roll music, unjustifiably maligned by record companies despite her undeniable presence on stage. Her quintessential single, “Hound Dog,” made popular when re-recorded by Elvis Presley, is an example of how this audacious performer’s contribution to music became marred in obscurity until only recently. "Why Willie Mae Thornton Matters," is a queer, Black “biography in essays" that reclaims the cultural impact of “Big Mama” as one of the most prominent Black women in contemporary music history, published by The University of Texas Press. Author and DJ scholar Lynnée Denise joins host Dr. Mark Anthony Neal for a live, in-person discussion about her much-lauded debut book. Denise also works as a Lecturer in the Department of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles.
You can find the book here: https://utpress.utexas.edu/9781477321188/
Learn more about Dj Lynnée Denise here: djlynneedenise.com
"Left of Black," Duke University's intrepid web series on Black Studies and the Black Arts, begins its milestone fifteenth season! "Left of Black" is the 2024 Gold Davey Award-winning and 2023 Webby Award-nominated series featuring interviews with Black Studies scholars, along with musicians and artists, created and hosted by the James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African and African American Studies, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal.
Directed, produced & edited by Eric Barstow, M.F.A.
Camera by Jakiah Glass and Emerson Kirby
Event support by Alexis Ligon Holloway and Elyana Riddick
Dive Into the Archive: leftofblack.org
Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thorton was a discarded icon of the era that ushered in American rock n’ roll music, unjustifiably maligned by record companies despite her undeniable presence on stage. Her quintessential single, “Hound Dog,” made popular when re-recorded by Elvis Presley, is an example of how this audacious performer’s contribution to music became marred in obscurity until only recently. "Why Willie Mae Thornton Matters," is a queer, Black “biography in essays" that reclaims the cultural impact of “Big Mama” as one of the most prominent Black women in contemporary music history, published by The University of Texas Press. Author and DJ scholar Lynnée Denise joins host Dr. Mark Anthony Neal for a live, in-person discussion about her much-lauded debut book. Denise also works as a Lecturer in the Department of Pan-African Studies at California State University, Los Angeles.
You can find the book here: https://utpress.utexas.edu/9781477321188/
Learn more about Dj Lynnée Denise here: djlynneedenise.com
"Left of Black," Duke University's intrepid web series on Black Studies and the Black Arts, begins its milestone fifteenth season! "Left of Black" is the 2024 Gold Davey Award-winning and 2023 Webby Award-nominated series featuring interviews with Black Studies scholars, along with musicians and artists, created and hosted by the James B. Duke Distinguished Professor of African and African American Studies, Dr. Mark Anthony Neal.
Directed, produced & edited by Eric Barstow, M.F.A.
Camera by Jakiah Glass and Emerson Kirby
Event support by Alexis Ligon Holloway and Elyana Riddick
