Blues legend Willie Dixon was born in Vicksburg, Mississippi, in 1915. His mother was a devoutly religious person who spent much of her time writing religious poems, which gave the young Willie exposure to rhyming and meter. At a young age he sang with a gospel group called the Union Jubilee Singers, who had a show on radio station WQBC in Vicksburg. He briefly gave up singing for a career as a boxer, but soon returned to his first love, music. He left Mississippi in 1936 for Chicago, which had a vibrant music scene, but he also kept his hand in boxing; in 1937 he became the Illinois Golden Gloves Boxing Champion. He turned pro . In 1980 he was inducted into the Blues Foundation's Hall of Fame. He still played clubs, festivals and toured the US and Europe, in addition to his songwriting and producing work. By 1990, however, his health began to decline and he had to cut down on his touring and scale back his performances with the Chicago Blues All-Stars. He died of a heart ailment in Burbank, California, two years later.
Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 (under the category Early Influence).
