The Cotton Club and other Harlem Renaissance clubs attracted many white patrons to see performances that portrayed exaggerated and racist stereotypes of African Americans. While this exposure helped popularize jazz and the careers of musicians like Duke Ellington and Cab Calloway, it also undermined the more serious intellectual and artistic goals of the Harlem Renaissance by promoting demeaning portrayals of black people that confirmed racial prejudices. The clubs presented a distorted view of black life that made it difficult for political activists to argue that African Americans deserved equal rights and self-government.