Sippie Wallace, born Beulah Thomas in Houston, on November 1, 1898 was an American blues musician (voice, piano).
Sippie Wallace was born into a musical family. Her brothers were George W. Thomas, a pianist, orchestra leader and composer and Hersal Thomas, her niece was Hociel Thomas, George's daughter. In her younger years, Wallace sang in church and played the organ. Later she performed in tent shows.
In 1915, she moved to New Orleans and married. In 1923 she moved to Chicago, where she made her first recordings as Sippie Wallace, the Texas Nightingale. During the 1920s she was one of the most popular blues singers. Between 1923 and 1927 she recorded over forty songs, most of which were written by her and her brothers. She performed with such well-known musicians as Louis Armstrong, Clarence Williams and King Oliver.
During the 1930s, she retired from the music business and performed only in churches in Detroit. During the 1940s, in the wake of the blues revivals, she released the album Sippie Wallace Sings the Blues and resumed touring. Bonnie Raitt, a student at the time, was so impressed with the album that she sought out Wallace. Both became friends and in 1981 recorded the album Sippie, which was nominated for a Grammy Award in 1983 and won a Handy Award in 1984.
Sippie Wallace performed until the 1990s. In Germany she became known for her collaboration with the boogiewoogie pianist Axel Zwingenberger. The latter dedicated to her his composition Blues for Sippie Wallace.
Sippie Wallace died in November 1986 on her birthday at the age of 88. She was inducted into the Michigan Women's Hall of Fame in 1993 and the Blues Hall of Fame in 2003.