Black History Month is observed during the month of February, dedicated to acknowledging the lesser-told stories, celebrating the successes, mourning the losses and furthering education of all.
Recognizing Black History Month means recognizing the highs, lows and everything in between experienced by Black Americans. Without their stories, modern day America would be vastly different.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a facet of American life that wasn’t deeply influenced, or created entirely, by Black people.
One such facet is music. Every genre has been touched by Black people and culture at some point in history, and many Black musicians had connections to Washington state.
Here are Black musicians connected to the Evergreen State that you should learn about and listen to this Black History Month and beyond.
Black musicians in WA history
It would be impossible to list every single talented Black artist with Washington state associations. For example, Ray Charles is credited with inspiring, guiding and collaborating with many of the best-known musicians from Washington during the late ‘40s, despite only operating out of Seattle for a couple of years and achieving mainstream success after the fact.
This listing also leaves out producers, bandleaders and composers, occupations which have all been greatly influenced by Black leaders, like Quincy Jones, a producer and arranger with more than two dozen Grammys, who got his start in Bremerton.
Find a record store near you to look for new local gems, support local live music and make a habit of listening to something new as often as you can.
Local recommendations around the state include Rainy Day Records in Olympia, Atomic Genius Records in Tacoma, Ritual Records in Bellingham and Groovy Records in Tri-Cities.
The following musicians are listed by genre and years of activity in the scene.
Jazz
Commonly referred to as the father of Seattle jazz, Oscar Holden arrived in Seattle as an adult in 1925, after having already established multiple bands in different regions of the country and in British Columbia. After having several children, Holden and his wife, Leala, would hold monthly jam sessions with musicians from all over.
Additionally, one of his children, Ron Holden, went on to become a semi-successful R&B artist in the 1960s.
- Edythe Turnham Orchestra — 1920s
Edythe Turnham and her husband, Floyd, were influential jazz musicians in Seattle and Spokane during Washington’s prime jazz age. She created a family band, referred to as both the Edythe Turnham Orchestra and Edythe Turnham and her Knights of Syncopation, which became a primary jazz band in Seattle. The success eventually took the family to Los Angeles, where the group’s name was changed to the Dixie Aces. Floyd and Edith’s son continued in the industry after his father’s death.
- Ernestine Anderson — 1940s
While she only lived in Seattle for about two years as a teenager, it was the jazz scene in Seattle that launched Ernestine Anderson’s career into jazz and blues. She was recruited into the Blackwell Junior Band after being discovered by the bandleader. The group helped many influential musicians start their careers, including Ray Charles and Quincy Jones. She began touring with bands while still in her teens, and went on to release her own music, with critical acclaim. She garnered many awards over the years and was nominated for four Grammys. Anderson returned to Washington later in life and died in Shoreline.
From a musical family, Patti Bown was raised in the Seattle area and grew up playing piano. While her sister, Edith Mary Valentine, became a successful concert pianist, Patti Bown opted for jazz. She played in bands in the late ‘40s before releasing a solo album in 1958.
Musician, singer and songwriter, Luther Rabb was part of many musical projects throughout his life. He reportedly began playing saxophone at the young age of 10, and was featured doing so in one of Jimi Hendrix’s first groups, the Velvetones. Over the years, he was also part of BallinJack, Santana and War, contributing in various roles.
R&B
Pianist Dave Lewis started multiple projects while growing up in Seattle, primarily in R&B with some touches of rock n’ roll. The prevalence of his projects at Seattle venues offered many younger enthusiasts their first exposure to R&B. His inclusion of an organ in the genre helped shape the regional sound for the time. Lewis’ nightclub-focused trio of the ‘60s secured multiple regional hits.
Blues
- Kenny ‘Blues Boss’ Wayne — 1960s
Kenny Wayne was born in Spokane but raised primarily in California. Exposed to an array of music from a young age, Wayne’s variety as a pianist and singer allowed him to start out in multiple genres, including pop and rock. But as he became more well-known, his talent in blues earned him nicknames like “the Blues Boss” and the “Gentlemen of the boogie woogie.” Since then, he has continued releasing music, dabbling in additional subgenres.
Born in Arkansas, Isaac Scott moved to the Pacific Northwest with his family in the ‘40s. Growing up, he was exposed to gospel and blues music in Portland and later, Washington. When he established a life in Seattle as an adult, he began to focus on blues, and subsequently is credited with forming the Seattle blues sound.
Rock
It would be remiss to leave the icon that is Jimi Hendrix off this list. His innovation on the guitar has inspired generations of musicians, despite only being active in the scene for about four years. He taught himself how to play the guitar while unable to read or write music, and quickly earned himself back-line guitar roles for big acts. While born in Seattle, he pursued music in different areas of the country until he was signed in 1966, which brought him to London to create the Jimi Hendrix Experience. While he continued to grow his expertise and took part in multiple other groups while the Experience gained worldwide fame, the legendary guitarist’s career was cut short in 1970 when he overdosed at 27 years old.
Lead singer in Bam Bam, Tina Bell is considered a queen or godmother of grunge. The band started with Bell and her husband, Tommy Martin — Bam Bam was a reference to their relationship, “Bell And Martin” — among other members. Their music was a precursor to the surge of grunge in ‘90s Seattle, yet their influence was often diminished until nearly a decade after Bell’s death.
Soul
Born in Seattle in the ‘50s and raised in Yakima, Oleta Adams sang and wrote gospel and soul music. She began singing in church while growing up, and eventually put out self-financed albums to get her start in the ‘80s, after Adams had moved to Kansas City, Missouri, where there were more gigs for her sound. She achieved relative success in the ‘90s, charting at number one in the UK and in the top five in the U.S. Adams has had four Grammy nominations and has appeared with numerous big names, including a stint touring in the Phil Collins’ Big Band Jazz Tour. She has continued to release music and tour in the decades since.
More modern Black musicians from WA
The impact of Black musicians in Washington’s music scene hasn’t changed over the years. In more recent decades, plenty of notable musicians have had connections to Washington.
The ‘90s brought two waves of hip-hop to Seattle — the first among the likes of Sir Mix-A-Lot and Kid Sensation, the second among the likes of Source of Labor and other hip-hop groups. Both waves include a myriad of artists worth listening to, and many of the main players from this time are still active in music today.
In 2005, a rapper from Seattle, NoClue, secured the Guinness World Record for the fastest rap MC when he performed 723 syllables in 51.27 seconds, or 14.1 syllables per second. For comparison, Eminem holds the record for the fastest verse, with 11 syllables per second. The record was printed in Guinness’ 2006 edition, but was beat by El Chojin in 2008, the last year the category was measured.
Many artists who saw varied success before the turn of the century pivoted to philanthropy after their music careers slowed down, giving back to their communities and offering meaningful opportunities for local youth. For example, Bernadette Bascom was an R&B singer based in Seattle during the ‘80s who now runs The Music Project of Northshore, a non-profit organization in the Northshore School District focusing on musical opportunities for students with disabilities.
