Bessie Smith (died 26 September 1937)
Stories about the tumultuous life and tragic death of Bessie Smith have too frequently overshadowed her life and accomplishments as a musician.
There are plenty of accounts of her life online--I'll link you here to Robert Dupuis's excellent essay in Contemporary Black Biography, and there you will find a complete discography and an ample bibliography.
But here's the best way to remember Bessie Smith today--here's "Young Woman's Blues" (recorded in 1926), here's "A Good Man Is Hard to Find" (recorded in 1927), and here's "I Need a Little Sugar in My Bowl" (recorded in 1931).