Instruments have always been essential to jazz music but one great vocalist one knew how to captivate listeners in such a way that her voice was all that they heard. Sarah Lois Vaughan was born March 27, 1924 in Newark, New Jersey to a family of a non- famous musical background. Vaughan started early with her musical interest by playing piano, sang in the church choir playing the organ by age 12 and attending Arts High School. In 1942, at the age of 18, Sarah and a friend decided to enter an amateur contest in the now famous Apollo Theater in Harlem, New York. .
Sarah won the prize of ten dollars and a weeks performance at the theater for singing "Body and Soul" but that is not all she won that day. Billy Eckstine, who was at that time a part of Earl "FATHA" Hines Big Band invited her to be second pianist and a vocalist in this band. By 1944 Hines had decided to form his own band which included Vaughan along with greats like Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, and Charlie Parker and was known for it's be-bop style music. During this time she made her first recordings and did a duet with Gillespie called "Lover Man". Sarah had later made the decision to go solo.
"Sassy" and "The Divine One" were two of nicknames given to Vaughan and by 1947 she had married trumpeter George Treadwell. In "49 she had signed with Columbia Records with a five- year contract. It is during this time where it is said Vaughan did most of her "sweet" or "commercial" work. In 1954 when her work with Columbia had been finished Sarah signed with Mercury. This was a great move for her, Mercury also had a more jazz based label called EmArcy, leaving Vaughan free to record both "popular" and her true love jazz. On the EmArcy label, Sarah recorded with artists such as Cannonball Aderly and Count Basie's Band. On the more commercial side of her music Sarah was making music with her long time friend Billy Eckstine. Many of articles say this was "Sassy's" finest time, her work was at it's best, she had reached great stardom and she had been voted Down Beat Magazine's "Most Popular Female Singer".