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Episode 3: Gladys Bentley
In this episode, Thomas tells us about the life of Black, lesbian blues singer, pianist and entertainer: Gladys Bentley. A star of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s, Bentley seemed in every way someone living their life on their terms. Until, that is, her star power began to dim and Bentley began to doubt her identity.
Content Warning:
This episode contains discussion of medical abuse and fatphobia. Listeners are strongly encouraged to consider to exercise caution.
Check us out across the web!
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Sources:
Bentley, Gladys. "I am a Woman Again." Ebony Magazine, August of 1952, pp. 93-98. Available courtesy of Queer Music Heritage, at https://www.queermusicheritage.com.
Bentley, Gladys. "Worried Blues/Ground Hog Blues." Lyrics attributed to Bentley, Bentley/J.C. Johnson on piano. Okeh Records,1928. Available courtesy of NYFOS: New York Festival of Song, at https://nyfos.org.
Delaney, Anthony and Maddy Pelling."Who was the 'Man-Monster' of New York?" After Dark Classics from the After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds and the Paranormal podcast. 29.12.2025.
Hurwitt, Elliott. "Gladys Bentley: Worried Blues." Song of Day blog post. NYFOS: New York Festival of Song. Originally published on 26.10.2015. Available at https://nyfos.org.
Jones, Regina. "How does a Bulldagger Get Out of the Footnote? Or Gladys Bentley's Blues." Ninepatch: A Creative Journal for Women and Gender Studies 1, nr. 1 (2012).
Torres, Bianki. Lay it on the Line: The Life and Music of Gladys Bentley. (PhD dissertation, University of Massachusetts, 2024.) Available via https://scholarworks.umass.edu.
Wilson, James. Bulldaggers, Pansies, and Chocolate Babies. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2010.
LEGAL
NO THESE OLD QUEERS CONTENT MAY BE USED FOR TRAINING, TESTING, OR DEVELOPING MACHINE LEARNING OR AI SYSTEMS WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION - TO SAVE YOU THE TROUBLE OF ASKING: WE WON'T GIVE IT TO YOU ANYWAY.
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By these old queersIn this episode, Thomas tells us about the life of Black, lesbian blues singer, pianist and entertainer: Gladys Bentley. A star of the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s and 1930s, Bentley seemed in every way someone living their life on their terms. Until, that is, her star power began to dim and Bentley began to doubt her identity.
Content Warning:
This episode contains discussion of medical abuse and fatphobia. Listeners are strongly encouraged to consider to exercise caution.
Check us out across the web!
website
pixelfed
bsky
insta
patreon
Sources:
Bentley, Gladys. "I am a Woman Again." Ebony Magazine, August of 1952, pp. 93-98. Available courtesy of Queer Music Heritage, at https://www.queermusicheritage.com.
Bentley, Gladys. "Worried Blues/Ground Hog Blues." Lyrics attributed to Bentley, Bentley/J.C. Johnson on piano. Okeh Records,1928. Available courtesy of NYFOS: New York Festival of Song, at https://nyfos.org.
Delaney, Anthony and Maddy Pelling."Who was the 'Man-Monster' of New York?" After Dark Classics from the After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds and the Paranormal podcast. 29.12.2025.
Hurwitt, Elliott. "Gladys Bentley: Worried Blues." Song of Day blog post. NYFOS: New York Festival of Song. Originally published on 26.10.2015. Available at https://nyfos.org.
Jones, Regina. "How does a Bulldagger Get Out of the Footnote? Or Gladys Bentley's Blues." Ninepatch: A Creative Journal for Women and Gender Studies 1, nr. 1 (2012).
Torres, Bianki. Lay it on the Line: The Life and Music of Gladys Bentley. (PhD dissertation, University of Massachusetts, 2024.) Available via https://scholarworks.umass.edu.
Wilson, James. Bulldaggers, Pansies, and Chocolate Babies. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2010.
LEGAL
NO THESE OLD QUEERS CONTENT MAY BE USED FOR TRAINING, TESTING, OR DEVELOPING MACHINE LEARNING OR AI SYSTEMS WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION - TO SAVE YOU THE TROUBLE OF ASKING: WE WON'T GIVE IT TO YOU ANYWAY.