Black LGBTQ Music History Makers: Big Freedia, the Queen of Bounce
Watch the episode above, then read on for the full story.
Today, we spotlight Big Freedia, the Queen of Bounce and one of the most influential LGBTQ voices in modern music.
If you've ever heard a crowd go wild the second a bounce beat drops, you've felt Big Freedia's influence, whether you knew her name or not.
Born and raised in New Orleans
Freddie Ross Jr. was born on January 28, 1978, in New Orleans. Bounce music, a high-energy style of hip hop rooted in Black New Orleans neighborhoods, block parties, and second lines, was the sound of home. Freedia didn't just perform it. She became its ambassador.
Early on, queer bounce artists like Freedia were often grouped under the label “sissy bounce.” Freedia has pushed back on that, saying bounce is bounce. The music doesn't need to be split into categories based on who is making it.
Taking bounce to the world
Through nonstop touring and unforgettable live shows, Freedia carried bounce far beyond New Orleans. Her reality series, Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce, premiered on Fuse in 2013 and gave viewers a look at her life, her family, and her city. She released her major-label debut, Just Be Free, in 2014, and her second studio album, Central City, in 2023.
The voice on the biggest songs
You've probably heard Freedia on a No. 1 record. Her voice is sampled on Beyoncé's “Formation” (2016), she's on the intro of Drake's “Nice for What” (2018), and she appears on Beyoncé's “Break My Soul” (2022). When the biggest stars in the world want that New Orleans energy, they call Freedia.
★ Key Moments
2013: Big Freedia: Queen of Bounce premieres on Fuse
2014: Releases Just Be Free
2016: Her voice is featured on Beyoncé's “Formation”
2018: Heard on Drake's No. 1 hit “Nice for What”
2022: Appears on Beyoncé's “Break My Soul”
Owning her identity
Freedia describes herself as gender fluid and has said she's fine with either he or she. She doesn't feel she has to choose. That ease with who she is runs through everything she does on stage.
Why Big Freedia matters to us
Big Freedia took a Black, Southern, queer sound that the mainstream ignored for years and made the whole world move to it. She never softened it, never left her city behind, and never asked permission. That's what Black and out loud looks like.
More History Makers
Cakes Da Killa: rewriting who belongs in hip hop
Doechii: making Grammy history
Carl Bean: the voice behind “I Was Born This Way”
Frankie Knuckles: the Godfather of House Music
Sources: Wikipedia
AmpliPhy | LGBTQ Voices, Black and Out Loud.
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