Biography

Carmen was born on April 8, 1920 in Harlem, New York. She lived in the Bronx for the first 14 years of her life then moved to the famous Sugar Hill in Harlem. She grew up with private piano lessons which she continued to use throughout her career. About 4 years later she was introduced to Irene Kitchings, a composer and pianist. Irene made a big push to Carmen’s career by introducing her to Billie Holiday, her idol within the jazz world. Carmen even gave Billie one of her songs “Dream of Life” which Billie later recorded. After being heavily influenced by Irene and Billie she was thrown into the jazz world. She played piano and sang in bands with Count Basie, Benny Carter, and Mercer Ellington. She soon signed a contract for the Decca label and her recordings become very well received. She was named Best New Female Singer of the Year by DownBeat magazine and even sang at Carnegie Hall at the All-Star Jazz Concert. Carmen was also awarded the NAACP, six Grammy nominations, and a master’s of jazz fellowship for lifetime achievement from the National Endowment for the Arts. Due to Carmen’s smoking habit, she had respiratory problems, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and emphysema. She eventually fell into a coma and passed away on November 10, 1994.