DeFord Bailey

A grandson of enslaved people, Bailey contracted polio at three, stunting his growth and leaving his back somewhat bent. He grew up in a musical family who played what he called “black hillbilly music,” a tradition of secular string band music shared by rural Black and White musicians alike. Bailey was a professional musician from the age of 15 and was a regular performer on Nashville radio station WSM in the 1920s. He was the first performer to be introduced to the station’s now-legendary Grand Ole Opry program.