Wanda Jackson emerged from Maud, Oklahoma, to become the first “Queen of Rockabilly.” She began her career singing with country artists like Hank Thompson and Red Foley, who hosted the Ozark Jubilee TV program. She had a country hit in 1954 with “You Can’t Have My Love,” a duet with Billy Gray. With encouragement from Elvis Presley, whom she met while on a package tour in 1955, Jackson moved in the direction of rock & roll. In 1957, Jackson gave the full-blown rockabilly treatment to a rhythm & blues number called “Fujiyama Mama.” Though it missed the U.S. charts, it became a hit in Japan. Jackson broke through as a rock & roll singer with “Let’s Have a Party,” a song previously recorded as “Party” by Elvis Presley and the Collins Kids. The song became Jackson’s first Top 40 hit. She recorded more rock & roll on the albums There’s a Party Goin’ On (1961) and Rockin’ with Wanda (1963). Jackson had two more Top 40 hits in 1961 – “Right or Wrong” and “In the Middle of a Heartache” – but both had a country sound, and that’s ultimately the direction she pursued, racking up 30 country hits between 1954 and 1974. Jackson has revisited rock & roll from time to time. Rock ‘n’ Roll Away Your Blues  was released in 1986. In 2009, she returned to her roots once again with I Remember Elvis, a tribute to her old friend and touring partner. In 2011, she released The Party Ain’t Over, produced by Jack White of the White Stripes. She recorded Encore prior to announcing her retirement from performing in 2019; the album came out in 2021. Wanda Jackson was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as an Early Influence in 2009.