My Deep Dive into Hazel Scott’s Writing World
So I decided to dig into Hazel Scott’s writing story. Knew she was this insane pianist, but kept hearing whispers about her writing chops too. Wanted to find out for myself what she actually put on paper.
First thing I did was hit the books. Grabbed every biography mentioning her name. Flipped through page after page, fingers getting dusty. Found loads about her playing and activism, right? But solid details on actual writing? Like pulling teeth. Kept seeing vague mentions of articles and opinions, but nothing concrete. Got kinda frustrated, ngl.
Then I shifted gears. Turned to old newspapers online – those archives are a rabbit hole. Trawled through digitized copies of old Black press publications. My eyes were crossing scrolling microfiche scans. Suddenly, bam! Spotted her byline in the Pittsburgh Courier.
Here’s what I pieced together from her articles:
- Sassy Advice Column: Wrote this column called “Hazel Scott’s Window”. Real direct, no sugarcoating. Told folks straight up about life, love, fighting discrimination. Like giving the establishment the big middle finger with every sentence.
- Hard-Hitting Opinions: Wasn’t scared to write about racist garbage she faced in Hollywood and the music biz. Called out the dirty practices, named names sometimes. Felt raw and honest.
- Her Autobiography: Found references to her working on a memoir. Got super excited! But then… hit a wall. Dug deeper. Looks like she never finished it. Or if she did, it vanished. Big, sad mystery. Imagine the stories she could’ve told!
The more I found, the more I realized something. Her writing was just another front in her lifelong fight. Same fire she brought to the piano. Those newspaper columns? Pure power moves using an ink pen instead of a keyboard. She spoke truth, ruffled feathers, and built up her community through words.
Finished feeling kinda salty, though. Why isn’t this part of her story shouted from the rooftops? Felt like uncovering buried treasure everyone else walked past. Her writing shows that Hazel Scott wasn’t just a musician; she was a thinker, a fighter with a typewriter too. Total legend.
