Women of “Little Harlem”: Bricktop, Josephine Baker, and the Influence of African American Culture in Interwar Paris

Abstract

During the interwar period, Paris witnessed a dynamic cultural transformation, which was shaped by the African American presence in the city. Jazz, brought by African American soldiers during and after WWI, ignited a musical revolution and defined the 1920’s as the Jazz Age in Europe as well as in the US, creating the myth of color-blind France. Cabaret culture provided a platform for African American women artists and entertainers, with Ada Bricktop Smith and Josephine Baker playing the leading role in the success and persistence of the “jazz age” in the 1920’s and 1930’s in France. Bricktop’s hospitality and entrepreneurship represented the focal point of the “jazz age” in Paris and her club Chez Bricktop a meeting space for the African American community in the city of light, contributing to making the neighborhood of Montmartre a “Little Harlem.” On the other hand, Josephine Baker’s iconic performances on the French stage and in cinema, resounded worldwide and provided a reflection on the colonial gaze, highlighting the complex intersection of race, gender, and power in the French colonial context and more generally, on the transatlantic scene. International mobilities from the Black Atlantic brought together diverse voices, fostering a unique blend of perspectives that characterized the interwar racial discourse on both sides of the Atlantic. Ideas from the Harlem Renaissance spread abroad, and the Nardal sisters were key figures in connecting African American intellectuals to Black French movements. This is an era that sees Paris as the canvas for multicultural interaction, exploring themes of race, identity and colonialism; a canvas which clearly sees African American culture and black women in its center.