The Vanishing of Harry Pace: Episode 1

The Rise and Fall of Black Swan

It was Motown before Motown, FUBU before FUBU: Black Swan Records, the record company founded by Harry Pace.

The Vanishing of Harry Pace was created by Jad Abumrad and Shima Oliaee

Harry Pace founded Black Swan Records exactly 100 years ago. Pace launched the career of Ethel Waters, Louis Armstrong, invented the term rock n roll, crafted hits with the father of the blues, inspired Ebony and Jet magazines, and desegregated the South Side of Chicago in an epic Supreme Court battle. Then, he disappeared.  The Vanishing of Harry Pace is a series about the phenomenal but forgotten man who changed the American music scene. It's a story about betrayal, family, hidden identities, and a time like no other.

This series was produced in collaboration with author Kiese Laymon, scholar Imani Perry, screenwriter Cord Jefferson, and WQXR’s Terrance McKnight. Jami Floyd is our consulting producer; our fact checker is Natalie Meade. Peter Pace lent his voice for our readings. Based on the book Black Swan Blues: the Hard Rise and Brutal Fall of America’s First Black Owned Record Label by Paul Slade. The series features interviews with Pace's descendants and over forty musicians, historians, writers, and musicologists, all of whom grapple with Pace’s enduring legacy.

This series is also a partnership with Radiodiaries.  Special thanks Joe Richman, Nellie Giles, Deborah George and Ben Shapiro.