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Breaking Through
Ella Fitzgerald was discovered at an amateur night at Harlem's Apollo Theater, and invited to try out for bandleader Chick Webb. He was impressed by her technical and creative talents and hired her to sing with his orchestra. When Webb died in 1939, the 22-year-old singer took over the orchestra, becoming one of the first woman musicians to lead her own band. As her experience and skill grew, so did her fame and popularity. |