Strange Fruit

A man named Abel Meeropol wrote a poem. He turned it into a song. It is called "Strange Fruit."

Billie Holiday sang the song in 1939. She sang it with great skill. The song tells of a hard time in the South. It talks about how Black people were treated poorly.

Many people heard her sing it. It became a very famous song. It helped people fight for civil rights. The song is still important today.

Abel Meeropol wrote a poem in 1937. He used a pseudonym, Lewis Allan. The poem was called "Bitter Fruit." It was inspired by a photo of a lynching. A lynching is a violent act against Black people.

Meeropol set the words to music. He later changed the title to "Strange Fruit." The singer Billie Holiday made the song famous in 1939. She sang it at a club called Café Society. The club was the first integrated nightclub in New York. This means people of all races could go there together.

Holiday's shows were very special. When she sang this song, the room went dark. A single spotlight shone on her face. Waiters stopped serving food. She sang with great power. The song became a symbol for the civil rights movement. It helped people fight for fair treatment. Many other singers have since covered the song. These include Nina Simone and Jeff Buckley. The song is now kept in the National Recording Registry. This is a list of very important recordings in U.S. history.

"Strange Fruit" is a powerful protest song that changed music history. It was written to speak out against the lynching of African Americans. A lynching is a violent act of harm against Black people. The song uses sad imagery to describe these events. It compares the victims to fruit hanging from trees. This song became a symbol for the civil rights movement. Some people even called it a "declaration of war."

The song began as a poem written by Abel Meeropol. He used the name Lewis Allan when he published it. He first called the poem "Bitter Fruit" in 1937. The poem appeared in a magazine called The New York Teacher. Meeropol was inspired by a photograph of a 1930 lynching. That event happened to two men named Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Indiana.

Meeropol eventually set his own words to music. He worked with his wife, Anne Shaffer, and a singer named Laura Duncan. They performed the song in New York City venues. One famous place they played was Madison Square Garden. Later, the singer Billie Holiday made the song world-famous. She first performed it at Café Society in 1939. This was the first integrated nightclub in New York City.

Billie Holiday's performances were very serious and controlled. When she sang, the lights in the room would go out. A single spotlight would shine only on her face. The waiters would stop serving food to the guests. Holiday recorded the song on April 20, 1939. She used the Commodore label for this famous recording. The song was a huge success and sold one million copies. It became the biggest-selling recording of her entire career.

Many famous artists have since performed their own versions. These singers include Nina Simone, Jeff Buckley, and Siouxsie and the Banshees. The song is recognized as a vital piece of American culture. In 2002, the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry. This list protects recordings that are historically significant. Time magazine even named it the "Best Song of the Century" in 1999. It remains a brave piece of music that people still study today.

"Strange Fruit" is a profound protest song that serves as a historical landmark. It was composed to protest the lynching of African Americans in the United States. Lynching refers to the extrajudicial killing of people by a mob. The song uses metaphor to describe these violent acts. It compares the victims to strange fruit hanging from trees. This piece of music is often called the beginning of the civil rights movement. Ahmet Ertegun, a co-founder of Atlantic Records, described it as a declaration of war.

The song originated from a poem written by Abel Meeropol. He used the pseudonym Lewis Allan for his writing. Meeropol was inspired by a photograph by Lawrence Beitler. The photo showed the 1930 lynching of Thomas Shipp and Abram Smith in Marion, Indiana. Meeropol published his poem in January 1937. He originally titled the poem "Bitter Fruit." It first appeared in The New York Teacher, which was a union magazine. Meeropol eventually set these lyrics to music himself. He collaborated with his wife, Anne Shaffer, and a singer named Laura Duncan. They performed the song at New York City venues like Madison Square Garden.

Billie Holiday transformed the song into a global phenomenon. She first performed it at Café Society in 1939. This was New York City's first integrated nightclub. Because the song was so powerful, the club created strict rules for its performance. Holiday would always sing it as her closing number. The waiters would stop all service to the guests in advance. The room would be plunged into darkness. Only a single spotlight would shine on Holiday's face. She often stood with her eyes closed during the musical introduction. This created an atmosphere that felt like a prayer.

Recording the song was a difficult process for Holiday. She approached her label, Columbia, to record the piece. However, the company feared a backlash from Southern retailers. They also worried about negative reactions from their radio affiliate, CBS. Her producer, John Hammond, also refused to record it. Eventually, Holiday turned to Milt Gabler at the Commodore label. She sang the song a cappella for him, which moved him to tears. The recording session took place on April 20, 1939. Frankie Newton's eight-piece Café Society Band provided the arrangement. Pianist Sonny White improvised an introduction because Gabler feared the song was too short. On the final recording, Holiday begins singing after 70 seconds.

The impact of the 1939 recording was massive. It eventually sold one million copies. This made it the biggest-selling recording of Holiday's career. The song became an anthem for the anti-lynching movement. Activists even encouraged people to mail copies of the song to senators. They hoped this would help pass federal laws against lynching. Such laws were often stopped in the Senate by Southern filibusters. The song remains a symbol of courage and social change. It connects the history of American music to the history of human rights.

Many different artists have recorded cover versions of "Strange Fruit." These interpretations span many different musical styles. Nina Simone recorded a version in 1965 that was described as bleak. The group Siouxsie and the Banshees released a version in 1987. Their version featured a solemn string section and a New Orleans funeral-march jazz bridge. Jeff Buckley also covered the song after hearing the version by Siouxsie and the Banshees. Other artists include UB40, Diana Ross, and Sting. In 2013, Kanye West sampled Nina Simone's version for his track "Blood on the Leaves." This sample caused a significant public uproar.

The song has received numerous prestigious honors over the decades. In 1999, Time magazine named it the "Best Song of the Century." The Library of Congress selected it for the National Recording Registry in 2002. This registry preserves recordings that are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. In 2005, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution ranked it number one on a list of 100 songs of the South. Rolling Stone has also recognized its importance. They listed it as the 21st best song of all time in 2021. In 2025, they placed it at number three on their list of the 100 best protest songs ever written.