Many of the greatest blues-men, old blues singers, and female blues artists are sadly no longer with us, but their legacies live on, often in rock artists who sold millions more records with versions of classic blues songs written by these great blues legends. Who are the greatest blues...
Over 3K music fans have voted on the 50+ Greatest Black Female Soul Singers. Current Top 3: Aretha Franklin, Etta James, Nina Simone
Bessie Smith, also known as the “Empress of the Blues,” was one of the most popular and influential blues singers of the 1920s and 1930s. Her powerful vocal abilities and emotive performances resonated deeply with audiences and continue to inspire blues and jazz musicians today. Smith was ...
She was dubbed, with some justification, the “Empress of the Blues” and though she died in 1937, aged 43, Bessie Smith’s influence permeated popular music for many years afterward. Among the many female singers who fell under her spell were Dinah Washington, Esther Phillips, and Billie Ho...
And, although it’s being sung by a female vocalist, it should be in a comfortable range for most male vocalists. First, it’s kind of monotone, especially during the verses. If anything, the beginning of phrases might take a little time to figure out, but it’s not too hard. ...
Shirley Caesar’s singer father, Jim, died when she was 12. She followed in his footsteps and became a singer. After performing with the legendary Caravans, she launched a solo career that saw her become the first black female gospel singer to win a Grammy. She subsequently won ten more ...
Dan Hicks & His Hot Licks—Striking it Rich—The all-acoustic ensemble out of the Bay Area was something of a throwback: part swing, part country-western, some blues, a coating of humor and cheeky attitude over it all. They were all virtuoso musicians and captivating singers and their song...
Chicago singer-songwriter Kara Jackson spends most of “dickhead blues” sounding exasperated—that’s what dealing with an endless stream of, as she puts it, “losers who find themselves losing me” will do to a person. But it’s not about them. It’s about Jackson proclaiming her self-...
On two standout solo albums, and as a member of the indie supergroup Boygenius, with Phoebe Bridgers and Lucy Dacus, she’s established herself as one of the leading female singer-songwriters of her generation, both for her music’s muted grandeur and lyrics that seem to dive headlong into...
One of Del Rey’s most heartfelt songs, “Blue Banisters” reflects on the love of female friendship and how it has remained a constant in her life as men have come and gone. When a lover neglects to “come back every May/Just to help me paint my banisters blue,” it’s the wom...