Tomorrow marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of the woman many consider the greatest jazz singer of all time: Lady Day, Billie Holiday. Like Billie Holiday, the poet Carole Boston Weatherford was raised in Baltimore. She now teaches at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina. The author of more than 40 books, she has won numerous awards for her books for children and young readers about important people and events in African American history. Her latest is a collection of poems that tell the story of Billie Holiday’s childhood and early career. It’s called "Becoming Billie Holiday". Carole Weatherford joins Tom Hall on the line from Fayetteville, NC, to talk about it.
Audra McDonald won her sixth Tony Award last year for her portrayal of Billie Holiday on Broadway in "Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill". HBO filmed a performance of the musical in New Orleans in December.
