Alberta Adams

Alberta Adams
Adams performing at Sushi Blues in December 2006
Background information
Birth name	Roberta Louise Osborn
Also known as	The Queen of the Blues
Born	(1917-07-26)July 26, 1917 Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.
Died	December 25, 2014(2014-12-25) (aged 97) Dearborn, Michigan, U.S.
Genres	Detroit blues, jump blues, Chicago blues
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Vocals
Years active	1930s
Labels	Chess Records, Savoy Records, Cannonball Records, Eastlawn Records
Associated acts	The Bluesettes, Tiny Bradshaw, Johnnie Bassett

Alberta Adams (July 26, 1917 – December 25, 2014) was an American Detroit blues, jump blues, and Chicago blues singer.

Raised in Detroit, Michigan, she began performing as a tap dancer and nightclub singer in the 1930s. In 1952, she signed a recording contract with Chess Records and recorded with Red Saunders for the label. She toured with Duke Ellington, Eddie Vinson, Louis Jordan, Lionel Hampton, and T-Bone Walker, among others.

In her solo career, she secured a recording contract with the now-defunct Cannonball Records and recorded two albums for them: Born with the Blues (1999) and Say Baby Say (2000). Her 2004 album, I'm on the Move, was released by Eastlawn Records. In 2006 she released the EP Detroit's Queen of the Blues, which was named Outstanding Blues/R&B Recording at the 2006 Detroit Music Awards. At age 91 she recorded Detroit Is My Home, with Ann Rabson and Thornetta Davis.

Adams was born as Roberta Louise Osborn on July 26, 1917, in Indianapolis, Indiana. She was raised in Detroit by family members, initially an aunt. From an early age she wanted to be an entertainer. Escaping a difficult home life at age fourteen, she began living on her own, getting a small apartment near Woodward, where she stayed for five or six years.