Billie and her mother used to fight a lot, when her mother was around. Much of the time Billie was left in the care of relatives or friends, many of whom were unloving (E). Billie's relationship with her family was very weak, as Billie throughout her life and career never or rarely got family approval or recognition (W 13). The extent to which Billie did not get along with her family is evident as she was chastised for her grandmother's death at the age of six (E). The turmoil within Billie's family was manifested when Billie

commented later on in life that "As far as I'm Concerned, all the Fagans are dead" (W 14). This made her family very mad and lead to their further abandonment of Billie. Aside from the superficial tension between Billie and her mother, they did their best to remain loyal to one another and provide for each other (W 201).

Musically, Billie grew up listening to the blues, although it never really was her type of music. Billie loved listening to Jazz records as a child, early influences including Louis Armstrong. Eventually, Billie moved on to attempt a singing career. "Inspired by her love of singing, she talked the manager of a club into letting her sing a few tunes with the house band- she made $57 in tips" (E). In this way, Billie was motivated to become a singer, a decision that will prove not only to be beneficial to her, but also to be a risk factor that would threaten her health.

Educationally, Billie was deprived. Never getting beyond the fifth gr

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Approximate Word count = 649
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)