In 1962, Mavis Staples and her family took the stage at Mandel Hall for the University of Chicago Folk Festival. In between bluegrass bands and bluesmen, the gospel group shook the crowd with their spiritual sound. The next year, The Staple Singers would meet the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.—a relationship that would change their music forever.
Staples recalled her father, Roebuck “Pops” Staples, saying of King: “I like this man's message. I think if he could preach it, we can sing it.”
The Staple Singers would go on to create iconic hits including “I’ll Take You There” and “Freedom Highway”—songs that helped provide the soundtrack for the Civil Rights era. More than 60 years later, the 84-year-old legendary singer recently returned to UChicago to perform for hundreds of high school students, undergraduate students and local community members—and to speak about her legacy using art to spark social change.
Theodosia Harris, a teacher from South Shore College Prep, prepared her students for the event by explaining that they were about to witness music royalty.
“Once she started singing, she had them,” Harris said. “It was over; I didn’t have to say any more after that.”
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