Music & Family Studies: Come Meet My Nana!
Hi guys!
Over Spring Break I got the opportunity to interview a very important person in my life, my Nana, Alice Allen.
Alice was born April 25,1940 and lived in Kingstree, SC. Now I know what you’re thinking…1940? That’s a lot of decades of music to cover! Believe me, I was too excited to hear what she had to say! Sadly, I will not be posting the entire interview (it’s over 40 minutes long), but below I’ve added some snippets from our interview to help guide this blog. Hope you enjoy it!
Music Background
Miss Allen told me about her first encounter with music at 8 years. Her parents didn’t listen to any music at home, so she and her siblings would go to the neighborhood lady’s corner store and listen to music on the radio! There, she discovered her love for Blues music. Artist like, Betty Wright, Otis Redding, and her all time favorite, Al Green.
Although Miss Allen’s parents didn’t really play music around the house, they still loved gospel music. She too shared they’re love of gospel. One of her favorite gospel artist was the late great Mr. Lee Williams of the Lee Williams & the Spiritual QC’s. At 12, she, and another guy in the community who played the guitar, would soon begin singing in the area. Sadly, that dream was short-lived when he went off to the army. It wasn’t until Miss Allen got married to James Allen (my grandpa) that she would be able to revive her singing days. This time, with her very own family: her and her daughters as backup singers, and her husband, James on the guitar and lead singer. They’d soon be known as the Allen Singers in 1972. This group would soon relocate to Columbia, SC in 1977 and stay there till the groups end in 1985.
In 2000, Miss Allen got to go to her very first concert ever! Where she saw the one and only, Patti Labelle. This also to date, is the only concert Miss Allen has ever been able to attend.
Getting the Band Back Together!
It’s been several years since the original Allen Singers last performed together. With chasing their own dreams and starting families, the group slowly began fading. But luckily, a new generation could bring it back. The Allen Singers: The Next Generation is an idea Miss Allen would love to see picked up by her grandchildren.
Pictured L to R: Ally (Soprano I/ Second Lead), Fabian (Musician/Tenor), Taylor (Soprano II),
Kris (Tenor/Lead Singer), Alissa (Alto).
And Lastly…
Nowadays, Miss Allen is living out her life in Columbia, SC content with her chihuahua, Caramel. Where they spend their days listening to the Gospel and the Blues.
Thank you for reading! See you, next time!
Down below I was able to capture
this very precious moment of my grandmother's humor.
She was super excited that I chose her to interview!
Your Nana seems like a really cool person that is fun to be around. She also has a very good taste in music. I hope I can see The Allen Singers: The Next Generation live someday if it happens.
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed getting to read about your Nana and learn about her music taste! She seems to have very good taste in music and seems to be very cool!
ReplyDeleteIt’s so cool that your grandma was singing and performing live by the age of 12! I’m also surprised that she didn’t get to go to a concert until 2000 considering how invested in music she seems to be but I imagine not many popular artists of the ‘50s and ‘60s came to visit the rural small towns in South Carolina. I like that you included video clips of your grandma too. It was fun to hear her actually talk about the music she’s enjoyed throughout her life!
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed reading about Your Nana and her music taste. I think that your Nana has a very good music taste and also is similar to the music taste within my family members and friends.
ReplyDeleteI love the layout of your blog! The overall summaries of each section and the embedded videos. I like that you included actual videos of your nana as well as music she is interested in.
ReplyDeleteYour Nana seems like a lovely person! I interviewed my dad for my blog and because he got a lot of his music taste from my grandmother, it's really similar to what you have here. She has great music taste!!
ReplyDeleteIt is really cool and unique that your sweet and cute grandmother was performing live as early as 12 years old. I get a lot of my musical taste and values from my grandparents (they consider themselves as hip). Most blogs i have read, people interviewed one generation above them, but you did an older, more wise, generation and I found that very interesting to see and hear her point of view and tastes. Thank you !!!
ReplyDeleteThis might have been one of my favorite post so far! It is interesting how her parents didn’t listen to any music growing, but I loved how she found a way to listen to it with her siblings. I think it is super sweet how she had a love for gospel music, and her family also shared a love for it as well.
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