Irma Thomas ( Lee; born February 18, 1941) is an American singer from

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. She is known as the "Soul Queen of New Orleans". Thomas is a contemporary of

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

and

Etta James Jamesetta Hawkins (January 25, 1938 – January 20, 2012), known professionally as Etta James, was an American singer and songwriter. Starting her career in 1954, James frequently performed in Nashville's R&B clubs, collectively known as the Ch ...

, but never experienced their level of commercial success. In 2007, she won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album for '' After the Rain'', her first Grammy in a career spanning over 50 years.

Life and career

Born Irma Lee, in Ponchatoula, Louisiana, United States, she was the daughter of Percy Lee, a steel chipper, and Vader Lee, who worked as a maid. As a teenager, she sang with a Baptist church choir. She auditioned for Specialty Records at the age of 13. By the time she was 19, she had been married twice and had four children. Keeping her second ex-husband's surname, she worked as a waitress in New Orleans, occasionally singing with bandleader Tommy Ridgley, who helped her land a record deal with the local

Ron Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald. Ron or RON may also refer to: Arts and media * Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character * Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character *Ron Douglas, the protagonist in '' Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe ...

label. Her first single, "Don't Mess with My Man", was released in late 1959, and reached number 22 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' R&B chart. She then began recording on the Minit label, working with songwriter and producer Allen Toussaint on songs including " It's Raining" and "Ruler of My Heart", which was later reinterpreted by

Otis Redding Otis Ray Redding Jr. (September 9, 1941 – December 10, 1967) was an American singer and songwriter. He is regarded as one of the greatest singers in the history of American popular music and a seminal artist in soul music and rhythm and blues. ...

as "Pain in My Heart". Imperial Records acquired Minit in 1963, and a string of successful releases followed. These included "Wish Someone Would Care", her biggest national hit; its B-side " Breakaway", written by Jackie DeShannon and Sharon Sheely (later covered by Tracey Ullman, among others). " Anyone Who Knows What Love Is (Will Understand)" was co-written by a young

Randy Newman Randall Stuart Newman (born November 28, 1943) is an American singer, songwriter, arranger, pianist, composer, conductor and orchestrator. He is known for his non-rhotic Southern American English, Southern-accented singing style, early America ...

and future country star Jeannie Seely. This song has gained renewed appreciation as a result of its inclusion in numerous episodes of the science fiction anthology television series ''

Black Mirror ''Black Mirror'' is a British anthology series, anthology television series created by Charlie Brooker. Most episodes are set in near-future dystopias containing Science fiction, sci-fi technology—a type of speculative fiction. The series i ...

'', stretching back to the first season. On its B-side is " Time Is on My Side", a song previously recorded by Kai Winding and later by the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

. Her first four Imperial singles all charted on ''Billboard''s pop chart, but her later releases were less successful. Unlike her contemporaries Aretha Franklin,

Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944) is an American singer and actress. Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Knight & the Pips, which included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and cousins Will ...

and

Dionne Warwick Marie Dionne Warwick ( ; born Marie Dionne Warrick; December 12, 1940) is an American singer, actress, and television host. During her career, Warwick has won many awards, including six Grammy Awards. She has been inducted into the Hollywood Wa ...

, she never managed to cross over into mainstream commercial success. She recorded for

Chess Records Chess Records was an American record company established in 1950 in Chicago, specializing in blues and rhythm and blues. It was the successor to Aristocrat Records, founded in 1947. It expanded into soul music, gospel music, early rock an ...

in 1967–1968 with some success; her version of the Otis Redding song "Good to Me" reached the R&B chart. She then relocated to California, releasing records on various small labels, before returning to Louisiana, and in the early 1980s opened the Lion's Den Club. '' Down by Law'', the 1986 independent film by

Jim Jarmusch James Robert Jarmusch ( ; born January 22, 1953) is an American film director, screenwriter and musician. He has been a major proponent of independent film, independent cinema since the 1980s, directing films such as ''Stranger Than Paradise'' ...

featured "It's Raining" in the soundtrack. The film's actors Roberto Benigni and

Nicoletta Braschi Nicoletta Braschi (; born 19 April 1960) is an Italian actress and producer, best known for her work with her husband, actor and director Roberto Benigni. Life and career Born in Cesena, Braschi studied in Rome's Academy of Dramatic Arts wh ...

, whose characters fell in love in the movie, danced to the song. After several years' break from recording, she was signed by

Rounder Records Rounder Records is an independent record label founded in 1970 in Somerville, Massachusetts, by Marian Leighton Levy, Ken Irwin, and Bill Nowlin. Focused on American roots music, Rounder's catalogue of more than 3000 titles includes records by A ...

, and in 1991 earned her first

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

nomination for ''Live! Simply the Best'', recorded in San Francisco. She subsequently released a number of traditional gospel albums, together with more secular recordings. The album ''Sing It!'' (1998) was nominated for a Grammy in 1999. Thomas was still active as a performer as of 2021, appearing annually at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (and was scheduled to appear at the iterations that were canceled due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

). She reigned as Queen of the Krewe du Vieux for the 1998 New Orleans Mardi Gras season. She often headlined at her own club, but it went out of business due to

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a powerful, devastating and historic tropical cyclone that caused 1,392 fatalities and damages estimated at $125 billion in late August 2005, particularly in the city of New Orleans and its surrounding area. ...

, which caused her to relocate to Gonzales, Louisiana, from New Orleans. she was back in her home in New Orleans. Thomas is interviewed on screen and appears in performance footage in the 2005 documentary film '' Make It Funky!'', which presents a history of New Orleans music and its influence on

rhythm and blues Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated within African American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predomina ...

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

and

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

. In the film, she performed "Old Records" with Allen Toussaint. In April 2007, Thomas was honored for her contributions to Louisiana music with induction into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. Also in 2007, Thomas accepted an invitation to participate in '' Goin' Home: A Tribute to Fats Domino'' where, singing with Marcia Ball, she contributed "I Just Can't Get New Orleans Off My Mind". The same year she won the Grammy Award for Best Contemporary Blues Album for '' After the Rain''. In August 2009, a compilation album with three new songs titled ''The Soul Queen of New Orleans: 50th Anniversary Celebration'' was released from Rounder Records to commemorate Thomas' 50th year as a recording artist. Thomas was the subject of the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival poster. She was chosen as the subject before the painting was chosen for the poster. Artist Douglas Bourgeois painted the singer in 2006. In 2010, Thomas rode in the New Orleans parade "Grela". In April that year, Thomas performed at the Corner Hotel,

Richmond, Victoria Richmond is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east of the Melbourne central business district, located within the City of Yarra Local government areas of Victoria, local government area. Richmond recorded a population of 2 ...

, Australia. In 2011, Thomas performed twice at the Byron Bay Bluesfest in Byron Bay, New South Wales, Australia. On April 24, she performed on the Crossroads stage, coming on after

Mavis Staples Mavis Staples (born July 10, 1939) is an American rhythm and blues and gospel music, gospel singer and civil rights activism, activist. She rose to fame as a member of her family's band The Staple Singers, of which she is the last surviving memb ...

; then on April 25, she headlined the Crossroads stage, coming on after Jethro Tull and

Osibisa Osibisa is a Ghanaian-Caribbean Afro rock band founded in London in the late 1960s by four expatriate West African and three London-based Caribbean musicians. Osibisa was the most successful and longest lived of the African-heritage bands in ...

. In 2013, Thomas was nominated for a

Blues Music Award The Blues Music Awards, formerly known as the W. C. Handy Awards (or "The Handys"), are awards presented by the Blues Foundation, a non-profit organization set up to foster blues heritage. The awards were originally named in honor of W. C. Handy, " ...

in the "Soul Blues Female Artist" category, which she duly won. She won the same award in 2014. In 2018, Thomas received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Performance at the Americana Music Honors & Awards. On May 2, 2024, Thomas appeared onstage with

the Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for over six decades, they are one of the most popular, influential, and enduring bands of the Album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the band pione ...

at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival where she and

Mick Jagger Sir Michael Philip Jagger (born 26 July 1943) is an English musician. He is known as the lead singer and one of the founder members of The Rolling Stones. Jagger has co-written most of the band's songs with lead guitarist Keith Richards; Jagge ...

sang a duet of her 1964 hit song " Time Is On My Side", which the Stones also recorded just months after her version was released. The song was the Stones' first Top Ten American hit, and the Jazz Fest set was the first time that Thomas and the Stones have performed together. In 2025, Thomas's album ''Audience with the Queen'' came out with Galactic, the New Orleans electro-funkers.

Artists worked with

* Tommy Ridgley * Eddie Bo * Edgar Blanchard *Bill Sinigal * Irving Banister * Patsy Vidalia * Marcia Ball * Dr. John * Allen Toussaint * Hugh Laurie *Skip Easterling * Danny White Irma thomas 2008

Influences

Mahalia Jackson Mahalia Jackson ( ; born Mahala Jackson; October 26, 1911 – January 27, 1972) was an American gospel music, gospel singer, widely considered one of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century. With a career spanning 40 years, Jackson was ...

* Pearl Bailey * Nancy Wilson *

Brook Benton Benjamin Franklin Peay (September 19, 1931 – April 9, 1988), known professionally as Brook Benton, was an American singer and songwriter whose music transcended rock and roll, rhythm and blues, and pop music genres in the 1950s and 1960s, with ...

* John Lee Hooker * Percy Mayfield

Discography

Singles

Albums

Compilation albums

Guest appearances

Filmography

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Thomas, Irma 1941 births Living people 20th-century African-American women singers 20th-century American women singers 20th-century American singers American women singers American rhythm and blues singers Contemporary blues musicians Delgado Community College alumni Imperial Records artists Chess Records artists Island Records artists Rounder Records artists Minit Records artists Rhythm and blues musicians from New Orleans People from Ponchatoula, Louisiana American soul musicians Grammy Award winners Alive Naturalsound Records artists American blues singers Blues musicians from Louisiana Singers from Louisiana 21st-century African-American musicians 21st-century African-American women Maison de Soul Records artists Stateside Records artists