Vickie Jones facts for kids
Mary Jane Jones (born around 1942, died 2000), known professionally as Vickie Jones, was an American singer. She became well-known in 1969 for sounding and looking very much like the famous singer Aretha Franklin.
Vickie Jones was born in Virginia. She started her singing journey in a touring Baptist church choir called the Great Gate, led by Reverend Billie Lee. As a single mother with four children, Vickie worked hard to support her family. She sometimes sang in local nightclubs, earning a small amount of money each night. Vickie greatly admired Aretha Franklin, who was about the same age and also started singing in a church choir. Vickie not only copied Aretha's voice but also her look. When Reverend Billie Lee found out his talented singer was performing in nightclubs, he was concerned but decided not to stop her.
A Plan for Impersonation
In January 1969, Vickie was performing at a nightclub in Richmond. She shared the stage with Lavell Hardy, a singer whose song "Don't Lose Your Groove" had been popular. Hardy was very impressed by how much Vickie sounded and looked like Aretha Franklin. He came up with a plan to use this similarity to make money.
Hardy convinced Vickie to travel to Melbourne, Florida. He told her she would perform six shows for $1000 as the opening act for Aretha Franklin. However, when Vickie arrived in Florida, she learned the truth. She was expected to pretend to be Aretha Franklin herself. Vickie did not want to do this at first, but Hardy pressured her to go along with the plan.
The Truth Comes Out
Aretha Franklin's legal team soon found out that someone was pretending to be her in Florida. They contacted the authorities in Florida to expose the trick. Vickie Jones explained her side of the story to the prosecutor in Ocala. The prosecutor decided that Vickie was an innocent person who had been tricked by Lavell Hardy.
During the court case, Vickie was asked to sing. The judge listened and decided that she sounded so much like Aretha Franklin that the audience had not really been cheated.
Life After the Impersonation
Just two weeks after this event, Vickie Jones had the chance to perform with the famous jazz musician Duke Ellington. He was touring Florida at the time and was very impressed by her singing talent. Duke Ellington believed that Vickie should stop trying to be like Aretha Franklin. He encouraged her to develop her own unique singing style and stage personality.
For a while, Vickie Jones continued to tour and perform under her own name. She became quite successful, so much so that another singer in Richmond even pretended to be Vickie Jones! However, after about a year of touring, Vickie decided to leave show business. She wanted to focus on raising her four children.
