She first appeared on stage in Columbus in "A Bunch of Blackberries" at the age of 14. She then joined a traveling vaudeville troupe, the Rabbit Foot Minstrels. After hearing a blues song at a theater in St. Louis sung by a local girl in 1902, she started performing in a blues style. She claimed at that time that she was the one who coined the name "blues" for the style that she specialized in. Musicians and singers who had sang and played in the style said there were no such origins and that the blues had always been. A pioneer in the style, Bunk Johnson said that in the 1880s the blues had already been developed.
She married fellow vaudeville singer William 'Pa' Rainey in 1904, changing her name to Ma Rainey. The pair toured with the Rabbit Foot Minstrels as Rainey & Rainey, Assassinators of the Blues, singing a mix of blues and popular songs. In 1912, she took the young Bessie Smith into the Rabbit Foot Minstrels, trained her, and worked with her until Smith left in 1915.
Also known, though less discussed, is the fact that she was bisexual. Rainey never shied away from her feelings in her music, as is apparent in the lyrics of "Prove It On Me":
"Went out last night with a crowd of my friends,
They must have been women, 'cause I don't like no men.
Wear my clothes just like a fan, Talk to gals just like any old man
'Cause they say I do it, ain't nobody caught me, Sure got to prove it on me."
Rainey was outspoken on women's issues and a role model for future women entertainers who took control of their own careers.
Ma Rainey was already a veteran performer with decades of touring with African-American shows in the U.S. Southern States when she made her first recordings in 1923. Rainey signed with Paramount Records and, between 1923 and 1928, she recorded 100 songs, sometimes accompanied such jazz notables as Louis Armstrong, Kid Ory, Fletcher Henderson and others. Rainey was extremely popular among southern blacks in the 1920s, but the Great Depression and changing tastes ended her career by 1933, when she retired.
Rainey died of a heart attack in 1939.
The 1982 August Wilson play Ma Rainey's Black Bottom was based on her.
Sissy Blues
Ma Rainey Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Woke up and found my man in a sissy's
Arms
"Hello, Central, it's 'bout to run me wild
Can I get that number, or will I have to wait a while?"
Some are young, some are old
My man says sissy's got good jelly roll
My man got a sissy, his name is Miss Kate
Now all the people ask me why I'm all alone
A sissy shook that thing and took my man from me
Ma Rainey's song, Sissy Blues, describes the singer's heartbreak and betrayal after she discovers that her man has been cheating on her with a male crossdresser. The lyrics are poignant and raw, depicting the singer's anger, frustration, and sadness as she laments the loss of her lover to a "sissy."
The song begins with the singer dreaming that she is "far from harm," but upon waking up, she finds her man in the embrace of another man dressed in women's clothing. She is furious, and calls the operator to ask for the sissy's phone number, but her emotions are so overwhelming that she can barely speak. The singer goes on to describe the sissy's sexual prowess, and how her man is drawn to him because of his "good jelly roll." She even gives the sissy a name, Miss Kate.
The song ends with the singer wondering why she's all alone, and her friends and neighbors asking her the same. She responds by saying that her man left her for a sissy who "shook that thing" and took him away from her. Overall, Sissy Blues is a powerful song about love, betrayal, and the pain of rejection, and stands as a testament to Ma Rainey's unique and influential contribution to the blues genre.
Line by Line Meaning
I dreamed last night I was far from harm
In my dream last night, I was in a safe place, free from any danger or harm.
Woke up and found my man in a sissy's Arms
But when I woke up, I discovered that my man was in the arms of another man who is a sissy.
"Hello, Central, it's 'bout to run me wild Can I get that number, or will I have to wait a while?"
I am so angry and upset right now that I can barely contain myself. Can you please give me the number of the person I need to speak to, or do I have to wait?
Some are young, some are old
There are all kinds of people in this world, young and old.
My man says sissy's got good jelly roll
My man told me that the sissy he's with is good at sex.
My man got a sissy, his name is Miss Kate
My man is now with a sissy whose name is Miss Kate.
He shook that thing like jelly on a plate
Miss Kate moved his body in a sexual manner, just like how jelly moves on a plate.
Now all the people ask me why I'm all alone
Everyone is asking me why I am suddenly single and alone.
A sissy shook that thing and took my man from me
It was the sexual attraction that the sissy had that convinced my man to leave me.
Contributed by Matthew R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@deesault7276
Ma Rainey is a featured musician in a chapter of the new book, "David Bowie Made Me Gay", by Darryl Bullock. An interesting read. Thanks for supplying her music.
@MaStormy
im a sissy....AND I LOVE THIS SONG!!!HOLLA!!
@christophercardenas157
:13 This photo is Bessie Smith, protege of Madame "Ma" Rainey, Empress of The Blues and Mother of The Blues respectively; the HBO movie "Bessie" stars Queen Latifah as Bessie and Mo'Nique as Ma, both do their own singing, do enjoy the "Bessie" trailer with their duet and dance, "Ma Rainey's Black Bottom," also the name of the 1984 August Wilson Broadway stage play with Tony Nominated Actress Theresa (TV's "That's My Mama") Merrit; Madame "Ma" Rainey is truly the voice of her people, the heaviness in her moans harkens back to the songs sung on slave plantations. Love you, Ma, still playing your original Paramount Records 78s in my collection----Andromeda International Records
@EnfantTerrible1993
Haha, my name is Gert and I'm a sissy. Could I be the reincarnation of Ma Rainey? :p
@amckinnish
wow so cool awsome voice my jazz muin i love you Ma rainy^6c
@CamiOrange
wow