Because you can only like one black female performer at a time, no matter how different they are.
But many black performers of that day turned the notion on its head.
She was hardly the first black performer to reach Paris.
They talked about how much black performers are admired in Japan.
The songs of many black performers only reflect this reality.
More to the broader point is the spreading influence and power of still another black performer.
They were the only black performers in the production that lasted from August 1938 until spring 1939.
But white interest in black performers has been growing.
However, major companies were not willing to advertise on a program that had a black performer.
It was the first time that a black performer stepped into a role played by a white person on Broadway.