Irma Thomas

Irma Thomas, often called the Soul Queen of New Orleans, is an American singer whose career stretches back to the late 1950s and early 1960s, when she recorded some of the definitive early soul sides to come out of New Orleans. Songs like «Time Is on My Side» — later famously covered by the Rolling Stones — «Ruler of My Heart», and «It's Raining» established her as one of the most emotionally direct vocalists of the era.

Her sound blends deep Southern soul with the distinctive New Orleans R&B feel, marked by her powerful, expressive voice and a phrasing style that draws as much from gospel as from rhythm and blues. Though she never achieved the crossover pop stardom of some contemporaries in the 1960s, she became a revered figure within soul and R&B circles and a fixture of New Orleans musical culture.

Thomas continued performing and recording for decades, maintaining close ties to her home city and becoming one of its most enduring musical ambassadors, closely identified with its clubs, festivals, and the broader New Orleans R&B tradition. Her catalog remains a touchstone for soul singers and a key part of the city's musical heritage.