Denise LaSalle

Denise LaSalle (Ora Denise Allen, July 16, 1934 - January 8, 2018) was an American blues R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and record producer who, since the death of Koko Taylor, has been recognized as the "Queen of the Blues". Born near Sidon, Mississippi and raised in Belzoni, she sang in church choirs before moving to Chicago in the early 1960s. She sat in with R&B musicians and wrote songs, influenced by country music as well as the blues, before winning a recording contract with Chess Records in 1967.