Mahalia Jackson, Moving On Up a Little Higher

The Story of an American Civil Rights Pioneer

by Timothy B. Tyson; Mary D. Williams

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Pub Date 18 Aug 2026 | Archive Date 31 Jul 2026

W. W. Norton & Company | Liveright

Arts & Photography | Biographies & Memoirs

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Description

“Mahalia Jackson was the greatest gospel singer of her time and an overlooked leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Her voice seemed born of heaven.” - Henry Louis Gates Jr.

If Americans remember Mahalia Jackson at all, they know her as the greatest gospel singer to ever live. New York Times best-selling author Timothy B. Tyson and acclaimed gospel singer Mary D. Williams, however, bring Jackson back to soaring life by restoring her status as a major civil rights figure. The authors trace Jackson’s career from bitter poverty in New Orleans to global superstardom, revealing how even after meteoric success, Jackson maintained an unwavering devotion to Black freedom. She worked for independent Black political power in the 1930s and 1940s; performed for the Montgomery Bus Boycott; sang in Birmingham and Selma; and performed at the March on Washington, where she prompted Martin Luther King Jr. to “Tell ’em about the dream.” Weaving together Jackson’s inspiring life with her soulful music into one sonically transcendent text, this revisionist biography presents Mahalia Jackson as a guiding light for the Civil Rights Movement, whose message still speaks to our struggles today.

About the Authors:

Timothy B. Tyson is senior research scholar at the Center for Documentary Studies at Duke University and the author of five books, including New York Times bestseller The Blood of Emmett Till.

Mary D. Williams is a gospel singer, civil rights historian, and former adjunct professor at Duke University. She has performed at the Kennedy Center and the Metropolitan Museum of Art and lives in Garner, North Carolina.

“Mahalia Jackson was the greatest gospel singer of her time and an overlooked leader in the Civil Rights Movement. Her voice seemed born of heaven.” - Henry Louis Gates Jr.

If Americans remember...

Advance Praise

"Mahalia Jackson shared the gift of her musical genius with us even as she worked tirelessly to advance the cause of Black people in the United States. Timothy B. Tyson and Mary D. Williams finally give Jackson her due as a pioneering figure in the Civil Rights Movement." -Annette Gordon-Reed, Pulitzer Prize–winning author and Carl M. Loeb University Professor, Harvard University

"When times were hard, Martin Luther King Jr. often reached for the one voice that could comfort and strengthen him—Mahalia Jackson, the greatest gospel singer of her time and an overlooked leader in the civil rights movement. Mahalia’s voice seemed born of heaven. In Mahalia Jackson, Moving On Up a Little Higher, Timothy Tyson and Mary D. Williams reveal how she walked this earth, lifting hearts and a movement. By the end, this deeply felt biography will leave readers reaching for her voice, too." -Henry Louis Gates Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor, Harvard University

"Until now, few have understood the deep connection between this gospel singer’s soul-stirring sound and the struggle for social justice that shaped her public life. .?.?. By taking her theomusicology seriously, Timothy B. Tyson and Mary D. Williams have given us the Mahalia Jackson we need in this moment." -Reverend Dr. William J. Barber II, co-author of White Poverty

"Mahalia Jackson’s contralto was an unparalleled bell note of justice, an anchor of power and righteousness that resonated throughout the freedom movement. This magnificent work, forged with care and profound insight, finally blends her full choral range, revealing how Jackson’s artistry and fierce political wisdom were inseparable. .?.?. A joyous, necessary reclamation." -Rhae Lynn Barnes, Princeton University, author of Darkology

"A welcome new portrait of Mahalia Jackson and her unswerving commitment to the Civil Rights Movement. .?.?. The combined talents of Timothy B. Tyson, a distinguished author, and Mary D. Williams, a powerful Black gospel singer, make this book a classic read." -William Ferris, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Available Editions

EDITION	Hardcover
ISBN	9781324094616
PRICE	$28.99 (USD)
PAGES	256

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