Rock 'n' roll icon Wanda Jackson to get rare Oklahoma honor at Capitol

Over the past 70 years, Wanda Jackson has forged a rare musical career.

The trailblazing Oklahoma native is considered the first female rock 'n' roll singer, but she also was just the fifth female artist to make the Billboard country music charts.

Along with her membership in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Rockabilly Hall of Fame and International Gospel Hall of Fame, she's probably the only person to be inducted into both the Oklahoma Hall of Fame and the German Country Music Hall of Fame.

"She is, without question, the only person in history that toured with both Elvis and Adele," said Brian Maughan, president of the Oklahoma City/County Historical Society board of directors.

Now, Jackson, 85, becomes the rare living Oklahoman to have a portrait in their honor permanently installed in the state Capitol.

"It really is awesome. When I was a young girl, I had a lot of dreams of being in show business. ... I've seen so many of my dreams come true in my lifetime, and this is the highest honor of all, I think," Jackson told The Oklahoman in a one-on-one interview at her south Oklahoma City home.

"I think it's next door to the governor's office ... so I didn't complain," she added with a laugh.

When will the new portrait of Oklahoma music icon Wanda Jackson be unveiled at the state Capitol?

A new portrait of the "First Lady of Rock 'n' Roll" will be unveiled in a public ceremony at 2 p.m. Sept. 13 on the second-floor rotunda of the state Capitol.

Hosted by the Oklahoma Arts Council, the portrait dedication will be led by Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell and include a musical tribute to Jackson performed by Owasso country singer Gracee Shriver, a 2019 finalist on the hit television show "The Voice."

"Wanda will deservedly be among the select few Oklahomans who have been afforded the honor of having their portrait unveiled at the Capitol during their lifetime, joining only the Native American ballerinas — The Five Moons — and artist Charles Banks Wilson in what is a highly esteemed cohort of individuals," said Oklahoma Arts Council Executive Director Amber Sharples in an email to The Oklahoman.

"Few performing artists have had their likeness enshrined in the art at the Capitol, but Wanda changed the world of popular music and gave women a seat at the table. She is most deserving of this moment, and we are delighted Oklahomans will get to experience what will be a historic celebration."

How rare is it for a living Oklahoman to have their portrait installed at the state Capitol?

In most cases, a person must be deceased for 10 years before their portrait can be considered for permanent installation in the state Capitol.

But Jackson in 2018 was named the state's 13th Oklahoma Cultural Treasure, making her eligible to have her portrait added to the state Capitol during her lifetime.

The governor and state Arts Council may designate a person an Oklahoma Cultural Treasure if that individual is considered “especially precious or valuable by a particular period, class, community or population.” The honoree must be at least 70 years old, a "bearer of intangible cultural assets" and have outstanding artistic or historical worth. Jackson is the first mainstream musician to receive the designation.

What other Oklahoma artists and entertainers have portraits in the state Capitol?

In 2021, Muscogee writer and performer Joy Harjo, a former U.S. Poet Laureate, was named the 14th Oklahoma Cultural Treasure. Other state Cultural Treasures include Chickasaw storyteller Te Ata, Comanche painter and flutist Doc Tate Nevaquaya, visual artists Ed Ruscha and Wilson Hurley, Kiowa writer N. Scott Momaday and African American historian John Hope Franklin.

Among the state Cultural Treasures, Te Ata, Franklin, Nevaquaya, Wilson and now Jackson have individual portraits in the state Capitol. The groundbreaking ballerinas known as the Five Moons — sisters Maria Tallchief and Marjorie Tallchief, Yvonne Chouteau, Moscelyne Larkin and Rosella Hightower — are featured as a group in Chickasaw artist Mike Larsen's "Flight of Spirit" mural overlooking the Capitol rotunda.

Other entertainers featured in state Capitol portraits include humorist Will Rogers and folk music icon Woody Guthrie.

"It's a huge honor. ... This is a pretty rare thing, and we're excited," said Gina Simpson, Jackson's daughter, who is planning to attend the ceremony along with the music icon and a host of her family, friends and fans.

What is involved with commissioning a state Capitol portrait?

The literal head of the Wanda Jackson Fan Club, Maughan said he has been working for about six years to have the music legend's portrait installed in the state Capitol.

"First, you have to get the distinction bestowed upon her of being a Cultural Treasure ... and then, you have to get the Capitol Preservation Commission to agree to have a portrait commissioned," said Maughan, who is also an Oklahoma County commissioner.

"Then, they give you a list of those that they accept as artists that are allowed to paint for the Capitol. Then, you have to find one of those artists that's willing to do it within the timeframe ... and then there's the fundraising campaign to pay for it."

He said no taxpayer dollars went into creating the portrait of Jackson, a Maud native and longtime OKC resident who opted to stay in her home state to build her international music career in an era when that just wasn't how show biz worked. 

"The fans and different people who really appreciate what she's done for Oklahoma and how proud they are of her came together for it. ... Everybody recognized the importance of bestowing this honor on her while she was still with us and healthy enough to enjoy it," said Maughan, who has been a Jackson fan since he saw her perform at the first concert he ever attended when he was just 14 years old.

"She's just so deserving, so this is a big thrill that she's getting to see this happen."

Who painted Wanda Jackson's state Capitol portrait?

An Oklahoma native now based in Colorado, award-winning artist Tracey Harris painted Jackson's state Capitol portrait. Harris, who previously created the portrait of acclaimed author Ralph Ellison that's in the Oklahoma State Capitol Art Collection, worked from a carefully chosen photograph of Jackson to capture the spirit and likeness of the "Queen of Rockabilly."

"We picked a photo that encompassed country and rockabilly, my fringed outfits and my guitar — all the things that the fans know about me. So, this one picture really has a great deal to say, and this artist, she is fantastic," said Jackson, who retired from touring in 2019 and released her 32nd and likely last album, "Encore," a collaboration with fellow Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Joan Jett and Kenny Laguna, in 2021.

Although she followed along with Harris' progress on the portrait through a series of photos, Jackson said she won't see the final painting until the unveiling ceremony at the state Capitol.

"I thought when you get a street named after you in your hometown, where you were born — and they did that for me in Maud — that was exciting. And then when they named a street for me in Bricktown, that was really awesome, too," Jackson said.

"It dawned on me two days ago actually ... that I'm gonna be up there (in the state Capitol) long after I'm gone. My kids and their kids and my family's all very proud ... so it'll be a big celebration."

WANDA JACKSON PORTRAIT UNVEILING

• When: 2 p.m. Sept. 13.

• Where: Second-floor rotunda of the state Capitol.

• Information: https://www.facebook.com/WandaJacksonFanClub/events.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Wanda Jackson portrait to be unveiled at Oklahoma Capitol in OKC