Billy Tipton

American jazz musician, bandleader and talent agent (1914–1989)

Born: 29 December 1914
Oklahoma City
Died: 21 January 1989
Spokane
Country: United States
Active: 1936–
Discography: 2 albums

Biography

Billy Tipton was a jazz musician who played piano and saxophone. Billy Tipton was born on 29 December 1914 in Oklahoma City and died on 21 January 1989 in Spokane. The music is usually filed under jazz. The discography here lists 2 albums, from “Sweet Georgia Brown” (1955) to “Billy Tipton Plays Hi-Fi On Piano” (1957).

Billy Lee Tipton (December 29, 1914 – January 21, 1989) was an American jazz musician, bandleader, and talent broker. He is notable for having been posthumously outed as a transgender man. Tipton's music career began in the mid-1930s when he led a band for radio broadcasts. He played in various dance bands in the 1940s and recorded two trio albums for a small record label in the mid-1950s. Thereafter, he worked as a talent broker. He stopped performing in the late 1970s due to arthritis. Tipton lived and identified as male for most of his adult life. After his death in 1989, paramedics discovered he was assigned female at birth, to the surprise of his friends and family. Tabloids and national newspapers picked up the story, scandalously reporting that "he was a she". Tipton is considered a prominent figure in transgender history in the United States.

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