Etta James was born Jamesetta Hawkins January 25, 1938 in Los Angeles, California. James is an American Blues, R&B and gospel singer also known by the nickname Miss Peaches. Born to an unmarried 14 year old mother (although she believes that Minnesota Fats was her father), she received her first professional vocal training at the age of 5, from James Earle Hines, musical director of the Echoes of Eden choir at St. Paul Baptist Church in Los Angeles. Her family moved to San Francisco, California in 1950, and in 1952 the trio (the Creolettes) she had formed with two of her friends came to the attention of Johnny Otis.
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