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Kansas City's raunchy blues queen

Published June 20, 2022 at 4:00 AM CDT
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David White, KCUR 89.3
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Images courtesy of LaBudde Special Collections, UMKC Libraries

For three decades, Julia Lee reigned over Kansas City jazz clubs singing risqué songs “her mother taught her not to sing.” But beyond the lyrical wordplay of hits like "Snatch and Grab It," Lee was a trailblazer for Black female musicians, and forged a career on her own terms.

Read more about Julia Lee, Kansas City's beloved 1940s jazz queen, from KCUR's Mackenzie Martin.

This episode of A People's History of Kansas City was reported, produced and mixed by Mackenzie Martin with editing by Barb Shelly and Suzanne Hogan.

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