I Must Have That Man!

The story of *I Must Have That Man!* takes us directly to the heart of Billie Holiday's life, a figure whose musical journey intertwines with a biography marked by struggle and resilience. This song, with its duration of 3:06, reflects her path from the toughest corners of Harlem to becoming a recognized voice in the world of jazz. Her life, which inspired the 1972 film *Lady Sings the Blues*, published in 1956, tells how she went from cleaning a brothel to shining on stages, all while battling addiction and loss.

Born as Eleanora Fagan Gough in Philadelphia on April 7, 1915, and affectionately known as Lady Day, Billie Holiday is considered by many to be one of the most important voices in jazz. Raised in Baltimore by very young parents —her father, Clarence Holiday, was only fifteen when she was born, and her mother, Sarah Fagan, thirteen—, her childhood was marked by paternal absence and maternal inexperience. These early years, filled with hardships, led her to a correctional house for abused girls at the age of ten and to work in brothels from the age of twelve. Her path led her to New York, where at fourteen she was forced into prostitution. It was in 1930, desperately seeking money to avoid eviction, that she entered a bar in Harlem. After a failed attempt as a dancer, a pianist gave her the chance to sing, and thus began her musical career, learning directly from recordings by artists like Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong.