Barbara Lynn

Empress of Gulf Coast Soul Barbara Lynn Reflects on Her Decades-Long Career

December 19, 2018 | By Wes Ferguson

Barbara Lynn was a left-handed young girl in Beaumont when she started sounding out notes and chords on a guitar made for right-handed musicians.
She’s always done things her own way. The pioneering sound that grew out of those childhood guitar rhythms—fiery and percussive, complemented by her soulful singing voice and a poet’s command of songwriting—took Lynn around the world, from Beaumont to the Apollo Theater in Harlem, and to the top of the charts in 1962.

Beaumont R&B Legend Barbara Lynn Named a National Heritage Fellow

October 16, 2018 | By

The National Heritage Fellowships are the United States’ highest honor in the folk and traditional arts. Lynn earned the recognition for her pioneering rhythm and blues career, which has garnered acclaim with her distinctive guitar play, soulful singing, and songwriting. From nightclubs in her native Beaumont—where her mother chaperoned her gigs when she was a teenager—Lynn’s career has taken her to the Apollo Theater in Harlem, American Bandstand, and other venues around the world.

Get the Magazine

Save up to 62% off the cover price

Subscribe

Sign Up for Our Newsletters

Sign up for magazine extras, upcoming events, Mercantile specials, subscription offers, and more.