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MUSICIAN

Lead Belly

1888 - 1949

Photo of Lead Belly

Icon of person Lead Belly

Huddie William Ledbetter (; January 1888 or 1889 – December 6, 1949), better known by the stage name Lead Belly, was an American folk and blues singer notable for his strong vocals, virtuosity on the twelve-string guitar, and the folk standards he introduced, including his renditions of "In the Pines", "Goodnight, Irene", "Midnight Special", "Cotton Fields", and "Boll Weevil". Lead Belly usually played a twelve-string guitar, but he also played the piano, mandolin, harmonica, violin, and windjammer. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Lead Belly has received more than 3,177,151 page views. His biography is available in 34 different languages on Wikipedia. Lead Belly is the 598th most popular musician (down from 511th in 2019), the 3,117th most popular biography from United States (down from 2,681st in 2019) and the 182nd most popular American Musician.

Memorability Metrics

  • 3.2M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 53.63

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 34

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 2.42

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 4.59

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Page views of Lead Bellies by language


Among MUSICIANS

Among musicians, Lead Belly ranks 598 out of 2,662Before him are Curtis Mayfield, İdil Biret, Willy DeVille, Josef Suk, Robert de Visée, and Tony Sheridan. After him are Ben Webster, Dick Dale, Hilton Valentine, Claude Bolling, Julian Fontana, and Elvis Costello.

Most Popular Musicians in Wikipedia

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1888, Lead Belly ranks 102Before him are Roberto Assagioli, Francesco Baracca, S. S. Van Dine, Harukichi Hyakutake, Marcel L'Herbier, and Carl Hilpert. After him are Archduchess Isabella of Austria, Hans Graf von Sponeck, Harilal Gandhi, José Félix Estigarribia, Odile Defraye, and Mohammed Hussein Heikal. Among people deceased in 1949, Lead Belly ranks 70Before him are Mariano Fortuny, Vladimir Nazor, Infanta Blanca of Spain, Alejandro Lerroux, Wakatsuki Reijirō, and Koçi Xoxe. After him are Martin Knudsen, Damaskinos of Athens, James Forrestal, Tan Malaka, Boris Asafyev, and Momčilo Tapavica.

Others Born in 1888

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Others Deceased in 1949

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In United States

Among people born in United States, Lead Belly ranks 3,117 out of 18,182Before him are William Levada (1936), Lauren Holly (1963), Henry Darger (1892), Paul Goodman (1911), Nancy Fraser (1947), and Miley Cyrus (1992). After him are Emmylou Harris (1947), Ben Webster (1909), William Wallace Campbell (1862), Lauren German (1978), Mark Forest (1933), and Steve Cropper (1941).

Among MUSICIANS In United States

Among musicians born in United States, Lead Belly ranks 182Before him are Al Di Meola (1954), Lee Morgan (1938), Ma Rainey (1886), Nikki Sixx (1958), Curtis Mayfield (1942), and Willy DeVille (1950). After him are Ben Webster (1909), Dick Dale (1937), Jeff Buckley (1966), Marty Friedman (1962), Frank Beard (1949), and GG Allin (1956).