Joan Baez was born in Staten Island, New York. As a child, her family converted to Quakerism and she continued to identify with it, especially in social issues. She often faced racial slurs and discrimination because of her Mexican heritage, and as she began touring refused to play whites only venues. Her family moved a lot, and she became involved in activism quite early on. She states that Social Justice is the true core of her life, looming larger than music. After graduating High School, she began performing in Boston in local clubs and gave her first concert at Club 47 in Cambridge, Massachusetts. After meeting prominent folk musicians Odetta and Bob Gibson, she was invited to perform at the 1959 Newport Folk Festival, where she was nicknamed "barefoot Madonna". The next year, she signed with Vanguard Records. Her first album titled "Joan Baez" was released in 1960 was a collection of folk ballads and blues sang to her own guitar accompaniment. She made her New York Concert Debut at the 92nd Street Y later that year, and then a sold-out performance at the town hall. Her second release "Joan Baez, Vol. 2" went gold and through the early-mid 1960's she was emulated and loved as a part of the American roots revival. Her distinctive voice and activism only got louder, as she used her music to speak out against the Vietnam War. In 1980, she was given honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degrees for her political activism and the universality of her music. Through the 1990s into the 2000's she recorded and re-recorded albums, played at festivals and benefits, and stayed active in her political efforts. As of 2020, she has received a Kennedy Center Honor and performed her final concert In Madrid.