One man, Daniel Louis Armstrong, gave many people from 1901 to 1971 the gift of music. His life was full of what he loved, and he had opportunities in music that nobody would think of doing at the time. Louis Armstrong had a style all his own. People from all backgrounds and colors loved him. It did not matter where a person came from or what language they spoke, people would come just to hear him play and sing. Armstrong knew how to please a crowd with what he had, and he always performed the best he could. He was given opportunities that took him far in his career as a trumpet player.
He left from New Orleans to Chicago in the year 1922. He arrived at the Chicago train station at about eleven o’clock at night.1 While in Chicago, Louis Armstrong went through many social situations that occurred in his time there. He went through the time of Prohibition, which gave rise to the illicit social environment in which jazz—and his career—flourished.2 This brought on challenges for any jazz player in Chicago during the time because of what was going on in the world. Many of those that would hire jazz players were hoodlums or quasi-hoodlums.3
Louis Armstrong was just getting used to being in Chicago, where he could do anything with his music because he had those opportunities. It took him time to embrace the Windy City fully because for Louis, this was unknown territory for him. Louis had taken their music out of its infancy and given it a powerful breath of new life and independence.4 He flourished in his style of jazz and created something much further than anyone could have thought. He could take any song and make it his own. His whole life he had a love for music, but during this time in Chicago he really started to show what he could do. After some time away from Chicago, he would come back as a solo act at the Regal Theater.5 Even though he had left Chicago for a time, he would always come back to experience the great joy that had brought him there in the first place.
He would do great things by himself, even though he always kept in contact with people he had played with before. He took time to be with his friends and family, playing whether it would be by himself or with bands that were with friends that he had made along the way. He accomplished many things in his lifetime, becoming one of America’s legendary musicians. He was very passionate about his music and he loved to please a crowd. He had a great life filled with many people that praised and loved him, helping him on his journey of being an amazing player.
- Laurence Bergreen, Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life (New York: Broadway Books, 1997), 175. ↵
- Bergreen, Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life, 194. ↵
- Bergreen, Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life, 195. ↵
- Bergreen, Louis Armstrong: An Extravagant Life, 200. ↵
- Terry Teachout, POPS: A Life of Louis Armstrong (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009), 132. ↵
59 comments
Richard Morales
Louis Armstong’s story is quite an inspiring one. I couldn’t imagine venturing off to a new city to pursue something so uncertain as music. Luckily he was bold enough to take this chance.He continued to work hard and as a result we witnessed the success of a Jazz Legend. It is amazing the amount of progress he made in the prohibition era. He changed the whole genre of jazz music. Although the article have been longer it was a great read.
Andrea Cabrera
It was a quite short article but very thorough and concise. Jazz is a very multicultural genre of music that helped black people express their emotions through their talents. I’ve heard about the famous Louis Armstrong and now I’m looking forward to listening more of his work. He was an artist that brought life through his lyrics and compositions. He did a big step to be able to pursue his dreams and share his gift of music. He became a legend and role model for most artists.
Eric Ortega Rodriguez
This was a very fascinating article to read. Louis Armstrong is admirable not only because of his amazing talent in music but also his accomplishments during the time when odds were against him. Louis Armstrong had to deal with Prohibition and being away from his family and loved ones when he moved to Chicago from New Orleans in 1922. Louis Armstrong will be not only be remembered for his music, but also for his perseverance and motivation to achieve his goals.
Luis Magana
Whenever I hear the last name Armstrong I think of the astronaut but this is completely different to what I imagined. Louis Armstrong had to have been very dedicated to music and have a big passion if he dropped everything in order to pursue his music career. He went out of his comfort zone and took a chance now he is a legend. He basically shaped what jazz is today. Amazing article enjoyed reading it.
Karina Cardona Ruiz
I had known of Louis Armstrong but I didn’t know much about him other than some of his music before reading this article. I like how he was able to overcome challenges that he faced that could’ve gotten in the way of him pursuing his musical career. I would think that the time of Prohibition could’ve held him back but he was able to make his career flourish instead. Overall I liked your article but I would’ve liked it more had it been longer.
Faten Al Shaibi
This is the third article I read for Vanessa Carrillo ,I liked her easy way to list her article.
Although I am not very familiar with jazz and its players, but I enjoyed reading the article and finding out about one of the legendary jazz musicians in America.It prompted me to learn more about Louis Armstrong.I’m looking forward to listen to one of his work
Hanadi Sonouper
Louis Armstrong was such a fundamental artist that shaped our music jazz society to what it is today. He not only created music, but he brought things to life with his lyrics and compositions. The author did a wonderful job at outlining his life and how he made an impact to the city of Chicago, bringing his influence from new York. His sound is still remarked as one of the greatest, being implemented by many artist today.
Didier Cadena
I was not that familiar with Louis Armstrong, so this article helped me learn some more about him. It was great to be able to read about someone who was willing to take a chance and go out of his comfort zone, which was an entirely different city. The article does a great job of being able to get information about his life and still include some of the most important parts to keep the reader engaged.
Miranda Alamilla
What a brave man Louis was, for leaving home and going to Chicago to pursue his music. It’s never just simple thing to do, to leave home, but he was able to do so and have his career flourish in style. Being that he moved in the time of the Prohibition and played the trumpet (the soul, alongside the saxophone, of jazz music) he was given many liberties and paths for his music. A legend.
Maricela Guerra
This article was sort of short for my taste, however with it being short it was still very informative. I enjoy this kind of music that Armstrong provided, I’m surprised that he just kept doing what he wanted to do even if there were the laws that could prevent him to follow his dream. He showed perseverance and didn’t let others stop in him in his path of going into the music industry.