Louis Armstrong was born in 1901 in New Orleans, Louisiana. Louis learned to play the cornet as a teenager. A cornet looks and sounds like a trumpet, but is shorter than a trumpet.

Louis played in bands in New Orleans. Louis was so good, he was asked to join a band in Chicago, Illinois. Louis moved to Chicago and took the town by storm. He became a very popular musician.

Louis moved to New York in 1924 to join the Fletcher Henderson’s Orchestra. He made many contributions to the band. It became known as one of the first jazz bands. Jazz is a kind of music. Jazz is the kind of music that Louis played.

Louis made many records in New York. He worked with many famous musicians. But he wasn’t happy in New York, so he moved back to Chicago.

Louis was much happier in Chicago and formed his own band called Louis Armstrong and His Hot Five. Later, it became Louis Armstrong and His Hot Seven. Louis began to sing with his band. Louis did scat singing, which is singing sounds instead of real words. Scat can sound a bit like: “Scooby doo wap wap.”

Louis became famous for his music and singing. In 1926, he sang the song “Heebie Jeebies.” Americans loved it. That same year, Louis switched to the trumpet instead of the cornet.

Louis went to England to tour in 1932. Louis performed all over England. He got the nickname “Satchmo” while he was there.

Louis and his trumpet became very famous. Louis acted in movies, recorded songs, and toured all over the world. Louis became the first black man to host a radio show. He was also the first jazz musician to write a book about his life. Louis is probably most famous for his song “What a Wonderful World.” Louis died in 1971.