22/02/2023
I never knew that she sang the EYE ON THE SPARROW song!
Ethel Waters is another shining example of an influential Black artist that began in the secular world and eventually brought her talents to the Gospel music scene. In 1950, Ethel Waters was the first Black American performer to star in her own regular television show, Beulah, but it was the 1961 role in the “Good Night, Sweet Blues” episode of the television series Route 66 that earned her an Emmy Award nomination, the first Black woman to be nominated. Acting was a second career after singing in four different genres—jazz, blues, pop, and Gospel. She performed on Broadway stages, the first Black artist to receive top billing with white stars. She also toured with evangelist Billy Graham. We inducted her into our Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1984.