Once upon a time, children's music was just Mother Goose, nursery songs, and lullabies. And then came Ella Jenkins.
Ella Jenkins is an American folk singer and living legend dubbed “The First Lady of Children’s Music.” For nearly 70 years, she has been writing and performing music that has entertained and engaged generations of young listeners. In
Make a Pretty Song, Ella’s life and legacy are captured in vibrant sights, sounds, and stories that leap right off the page.
Born in St. Louis, Missouri, and raised in Chicago, Ella grew up loving music of all kinds—the call-and-response of Cab Calloway, the exciting rhythms of Moroccan and Indian records spun in a local record shop, the bluesy notes her uncle teased from his harmonica. She listened to music from around the world, and no matter what language it was in, she could feel what it meant—the bridge in understanding and feeling that music offers from one hea
