Jackie Shane (1940-2019) plaque, 2023. Photo by Oscar Akamine.  

Plaque Text

Jackie Shane was a pioneering transgender musician who electrified Toronto's nightclubs in the 1960s with her high-energy R&B shows.

Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Shane sang in choirs as a child and joined the city's R&B scene as a teen. By age 13, she saw herself as a woman in a man's body and began to identify as a woman around family and friends. Shane played on recordings of other artists and performed with Little Richard and Joe Tex.

Appalled by racism in the American south, Shane moved in 1961 to Montreal, then Toronto, where she played with trumpeter Frank Motley and his band. Shane created her own act and packed nightclubs with her soulful, dynamic shows, which included monologues about her life, gender identity, and sexuality.

She released several singles, including "Money (That's What I Want)"and "You Are My Sunshine", and sang on TV. Her version of "Any Other Way" by William Bell reached number two on the CHUM singles chart in 1963 and she recorded a live album at the Saphire Tavern, which was located here, in 1967.

In 1968, Shane moved to Los Angeles to care for her mother, but returned several times until she retired in 1971 and led a very private life. In the 2010s, renewed interest in Shane's pioneering career led to many commemorations and a re-release of her recordings that was nominated for a Grammy in 2019.