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3 unusual facts about Lift Every Voice and Sing


Augusta Savage

Savage received a commission from the 1939 New York World's Fair; she created Lift Every Voice and Sing, inspired by the song by James Weldon and Rosamond Johnson.

Lift Every Voice

"Lift Every Voice and Sing", a 1900 song written as a poem by James Weldon Johnson and set to music by his brother Rosamond Johnson

Lift Every Voice and Sing

In 1990, singer Melba Moore released a modern rendition of the song, which she recorded along with others including R&B artists Stephanie Mills, Anita Baker, Dionne Warwick, Bobby Brown, Stevie Wonder, Jeffrey Osborne, and Howard Hewett; and gospel artists BeBe & CeCe Winans, Take 6, and The Clark Sisters, after which, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing" was entered into the Congressional Record by Del.


Stanford Talisman

Their musical repertoire includes "One by One," "Lift E'vry Voice" (the Black national anthem), "Baba Yetu" (featured on the video game Civilization IV), Sweet Honey in the Rock's "Wanting Memories," a powerful Native American chant "Wahjeeleh-Yihm," and the traditional spiritual "Amazing Grace."


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