December 1927

Duke Ellington and his orchestra began their legendary residency at Harlem's Cotton Club, launching nationwide radio broadcasts that made Ellington a household name. The engagement transformed jazz into America's popular music and established Ellington as the premier composer-bandleader of the century.

On December 4, 1927, Duke Ellington's orchestra opened as the house band at the Cotton Club in Harlem, beginning a residency that would last until June 1931. Live radio broadcasts from the club brought Ellington's music into homes across the country and transformed him from a Harlem bandleader into a national star. The Cotton Club era produced some of his most important early compositions and established the sophisticated 'jungle sound' that defined his early style.