I failed in music. I failed in arts. I failed in home economics. The thing that kept me in school was that I could do this performance once a year with Mr. Chinnery. I was solo singer, and I didn't know I was going to be a singer. It was just something to do. I didn't want to leave school because I didn't have anything to do and mama wouldn't want me -- she wouldn't let me just sit around and -- you know what I mean? I did it to please her. So, I finished high school, and when I was 20, going on 20, my oldest brother came from California to see my mother. We were living in Jackson, Michigan, by then. I'd already made a debut in Jackson. I was singing at the Elks Club with this band, Benny Poole. Maybe six, five or six times, we were in performance. I don't think it was any more than that, probably less. Battle Creek, Michigan, and the Masonic Club. Jackson is famous for its prison, and I met some musicians there, as I said, Benny Poole, and for the first time, I could see myself as a singer.