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10 Interesting Facts About Nat King Cole

Born Nathaniel Adams Cole in 1919, Nat King Cole was among the notable and influential pianists of the 20^th century. In the course of his career, the artist achieved great success, especially in light swing and warm ballads. The artist started his musical career when he was young because his father was a pastor and which means that he used to play the organ while in church. This article will look at the ten interesting facts about the artist that will give us insight into the life of the artist so that the reader can understand more about him and thus get in-depth knowledge about him.

1 He got into music early in his life

Nat King Cole was born to a father who was a preacher and a mother who played the piano. This shows that from a young age, he knew that music would be a huge part of his life. When he was 15 years old, he dropped out of school so that he could concentrate on his music career as a jazz pianist. He even used to sneak out of his home and go to sit outside in clubs so that he could listen to iconic artists like Jimmie Noone, Louis Armstrong and Earl Hines.

2 He challenged Earl Hines to a battle of bands

During one of his expeditions where the artist used to sneak away to sit outside clubs so that he could listen to his icons play, he was inspired and thus formed a small jazz band known as Rogues of Rhythm with his schoolmates. The band used to play around town and thus gained a lot of attention from the townspeople. With his newfound confidence, he and his band challenged Earl Hines, a jazz icon into a battle of bands. Many people expected him to fail but Cole knew how to play very well and they managed to beat the legendary jazz pianist Earl Hines.

3 He moved to Chicago

After dropping out of high school to pursue his musical career, Nat King Cole decided to move to the west Coast with Shuffle Alomg to try and find his path to stardom. His brother did not want him to leave Chicago as he wanted them to continue with the Swingsters. Even though Nat King Cole, enjoyed spending time and working together, he had other plans for his life. As he knew from a young age that he wanted to go into the music industry, it was predictable that he would choose to go and follow his career.

4 He fell in love with an older lady

After being on tour with Shuffle Along for less than a year, Nat King Cole met Nadine and they started dating and married Nadine. At this time he was eighteen years old. Cole moved to Los Angeles with his new wife in the hopes that they could both continue their careers. Cole played the piano in big bands and nightclubs, but he was still known as Nat Coles. It was time for him to think of an iconic name that would stick with him for the rest of his career.

5 He had a radio program

At the time that Cole was starting out in his career, radio was the main source of enterprise and this means that it had a lot of influence on the audience.  However, black content was not popular during this time.  Therefore,  when the artist’s band got a 15-minute program known as King Cole Trio Time, it was a big win for them. This was the first radio program that featured a black musician and that make him a pioneer.

6 Other artists labelled him as a sellout

Cole’s music evolved from traditional jazz tunes to a more popular genre, something more pop than classic jazz, as his singing career grew. It wasn’t anything like what we’d call pop today, but many jazz musicians still saw him as a sellout, angrily insisting that he was now only making music for money. However, that did not stop Cole and he continued to feature jazz in his own unique way.

7 Nat Cole in television

Nat King Cole made waves in 1956 when he became the first black artist to host a television show. The Nat King Show featured several modern performers like Peggy Lee, Sammy Davis, Tony Bennet and Count Basie. However, the show went off the air in 1957 because of the lack of a national sponsor. Cole went on to appear on the Garry Moore Show and the Ed Sullivan Show. The star was also featured in several films.

 He faced a lot of challenges in the entertainment industry

Cole encountered hardship and prejudice throughout his life as a black artist in the entertainment sector. His face was lightened with makeup when he performed on TV to cover up his dark skin tone. Many producers at the time had the opinion that “whitening” the faces of black singers made them more appealing to white viewers.

9 The album Magic of Christmas was a bestseller

In 1960, Nat King Cole published The Magic of Christmas, which was reissued three years later under a new name ‘The Christmas Song’. The best-selling Christmas record from the 1960s has maintained strong sales into the 21st century and debuted on the Billboard 200’s Top 10 on January 5, 2019.

10 He died of cancer

Cole found out he had lung cancer in 1964. Only a few months later, on February 15, 1965, he passed suddenly. He had a successful career and his music is still being played today. Many of his other songs have been routinely chosen for film and television soundtracks, and his version of The Christmas Song has established itself as a holiday classic. Only Natalie followed a profession in music out of the five kids. She collaborated with her father’s voice in a duet for the song “Unforgettable” in 1991, which helped her father achieve a posthumous hit.