DENISE
LASALLE
The legendary, Queen of the Blues, Denise LaSalle, was born near Sidon, Mississippi in 1941 as Ora Denise Allen. Her parents were Nathaniel Allen Sr. and Nancy Allen. The family moved to Belzoni, Mississippi when she was an infant. Her family worked as sharecroppers. When Denise was old enough, she picked cotton and did other labor to help her parents make ends meet. Her family were honest, hard-working church-going and talented. Denise displayed a love for country music at an early age. She also have a love for the Grand Ole Opry radio shows. The Allen family lived across the street from one of Belzoni’s “juke joints” and music, lore, and Blues culture was integral to her formative years; however, as a youth, Denise sang gospel music, as she was greatly influenced by legendary gospel great, Mahalia Jackson.
Due to the increasing racial tensions and Jim Crow laws, Denise would feel the pressures of living in the Deep South. From 1949 to 1953, Denise’s mother Nancy would take her to visit family members living in “The Windy City” of Chicago. Denise was fascinated by Chicago’s South Side community, as it was worlds apart from Blezoni.
In the 1950’s, Mississippi, African American men, such as Medgar Evers, T.R.M. Howard and Rev. George W. Lee were starting to challenge the social order. Many men that Denise knew were killed or forced to leave Mississippi, during the Civil Rights Movement.
Denise LaSalle is recognized by blues fans, musicians, music experts and critics internationally as America’s reigning "Queen of the Blues". Since 2009 following the death of Koko Taylor, LaSalle has been recognized as the uncontested "Queen of the Blues".