According to Linda Ronstadt, This Musician Created Pop Music

Very rarely is the creator of a genre ever pin-pointed. However, according to Linda Ronstadt, that is not the case for pop music. Ronstadt’s career outside of her opinions is incredibly expansive and spans several genres and decades. Notably, Ronstadt created her hit single “Blue Bayou” and dated J.D. Souther, which consequently led to the invention of The Eagles. Though, that is a story for another time.

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Thanks to her diverse musical taste and presence, it seems Ronstadt is a walking music encyclopedia. So, her perspective on the founder of pop music is not out of pocket in the slightest. Rather, it is based on an innate knowledge unique to Ronstadt and a few others.

Linda Ronstadt’s Founding Pop Musician Figure

Like most musicians of Ronstadt’s caliber, their taste does not reside in one genre. Instead, it resides on every inch of the musical spectrum and leaves no stone unturned. That being so, Ronstadt listens to seemingly everything. Whether it be jazz, country, or rock, you name it and it’s probably been in her ears at some point in time. However, the artist she paid the most credit to, is the one and only, Billie Holiday.

In an interview with Dig, Ronstadt divulged the importance Holiday had on both her and the larger musical world. She stated, “My dad bought lots of records home. I remember being enchanted by Billie Holiday” and “She invented pop music and the things we all later did.” Ronstadt continued her praise by uttering, “She made music so intimate. She and Frank Sinatra are the two biggest influences on popular singing in the 20th century” and “I tried to do what they did.”

In addition to Ronstadt’s praises, many other musicians have praised the lasting influence of Billie Holiday. Prior to her early demise in 1959 at 44-years-old, Holiday shared the same stature as names such as Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Nina Simone, and Ella Fitzgerald. Thanks to her songs “Blue Moon,” “Strange Fruit,” and “I’ll Be Seeing You,” Holiday’s legacy extends far beyond the ears of just Linda Ronstadt.

Even though Ronstadt didn’t specifically articulate how and why Holiday created the pop genre, the correlation between her comment and Holiday’s music is certainly there. We won’t take the time to spell it out for you, but give it a go and try to decipher Ronstadt’s comment for yourself. Surely, you can see where the Grammy-winning musician is coming from.

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