Dr. Kimberly Mack, UToledo assistant professor of English, discusses how Ma Rainey — known as the “Mother of the Blues” —challenged convention on her way to becoming an icon. Rainey is the subject of a Netflix film adaptation of August Wilson’s 1982 play “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” that debuted on Dec. 18.
Read: Ma Rainey Is Best Known as a Pioneer of the Blues. But She Broke More Than Musical Barriers
