Queen ida biography

Ida Lewis "Queen Ida" Guilloryis an Louisiana Creole accordionist. She was the first female accordion player to lead a zydeco band. Queen Ida's music is an eclectic mix of R&B, Caribbean, and Cajun, though the presence of her accordion always keeps it traditional.


Queen Idarelated in her book of recipes and stories, Cookin' With Queen Ida: "Bon Temps" Creole Recipes (& Stories) From the Queen of Zydeco Music, the way in which she acquired her stage name.

At the end of a masquerade dance on Mardi Gras night in California's Bay Area in , Ida Lewis Guillory was brought onstage with the introduction "Tonight we're going to crown you Ida--Queen of the Zydeco Accordion and Queen of Zydeco Music." A reporter in the crowd, Peter Levine, did a story on the dance that appeared a few weeks later in the Sunday magazine of the San Francisco Chronicle, and soon calls were coming in from Bay Area clubs to book "Queen Ida" for appearances.

At that point, however,