Set in 1920s Harlem--a magnet for black entertainers, thrill-seeking white patrons and mobsters--black jazz singer Georgia Freeman and white mobster Johnny Verona fall in love. Georgia wants to go to Paris where interracial relationships are accepted and black singers are lionized but Johnny wants to stay and climb the ranks of the mob. Matters worsen when his mob boss takes over the club where Georgia sings, exploits the entertainers and forces Johnny to marry his daughter.