Born on June 17, 1890 in Detroit, Michigan, Florence Cole was immersed in music from her earliest days. Her mother Sadie was a celebrated mezzo-soprano and a former member of the famed Fisk Jubilee Singers, while her father Thomas was a talented basso known for being a dramatic reader. Unsurprising given her roots, Florence began her musical education at a very young age, training as both a vocalist and pianist. In 1898, Florence and her family relocated to Los Angeles, where she continued her musical endeavors.

As the first black student to attend Los Angeles High School, Florence began to garner attention for her undeniable talents, eventually leading her to train under the tutelage of renowned sopranos Gloria Mayne Windsor and Emma Azalia Hackley at the age of sixteen. Her talents led to her selection as a soloist for her school’s commencement events, making her the first black student to participate in a high school commencement program in Los Angeles history.

After attending college at the University of Southern California College of Music, where she specialized in oratorio, Florence began touring with Hahn’s Jubilee Singers throughout North America. Soon after, she married Wendall Talbert, the group’s pianist. Although the marriage would prove to be short-lived, Florence retained his last name for professional reasons.

In 1916, she relocated to Chicago and enrolled at the Chicago Musical College, eventually becoming the first black student to appear in one of the school’s programs. After graduating with the school’s highest honors, Florence began to make solo appearances in Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and Chicago, dazzling crowds with her unparalleled vocal abilities and earning a reputation as an idol of the stage. “Her voice was pure and high and held appealing expression that was exquisite at times, then full of the sunlight or spring, or again told this gripping tale with pathos and sympathy,” wrote The Washington Times.

In 1919, Florence McCleave began her recording career with George Broome’s Broome Special Phonograph label, making her one of the very few African American classical singers to be recorded during the era. In the following years, she would record additional sides for Black Swan Records, the earliest major label to be owned and operated by African Americans, as well as with Paramount Records, where her music was a major departure from that label’s normal output of so-called “race records.” These recordings displayed the versatility and range of her repertoire and included spirituals, modern compositions, and classic operatic arias.

Having already conquered the heights of the opera world, McCleave spent much of the next few decades dedicating her time towards mentoring and educating the new generation of aspiring singers and musicians. In 1930, she accepted a teaching position at Bishop College in Texas, where she became the school’s first black director of music. From there, she would head the vocal departments at the Tuskegee Institute, Alabama State College, and Fisk University, before eventually settling in Memphis.

In addition to opening her own private studio in the city, McCleave was also instrumental in bringing world-renown artists to perform at LeMoyne-Owen College, giving many young African American musicians their first exposure to legendary vocalists such as Leontyne Price and Marian Anderson. Furthermore, McCleave was a co-founder of the Memphis Music Association and the Christian Science Society Church of Memphis, further bolstering her reputation as a pillar of the community.