[1] Her AllMusic profile describes her as "a wildly flamboyant funk diva with few equals ... [who] combined the gritty emotional realism of Tina Turner, the futurist fashion sense of David Bowie, and the trendsetting flair of Miles Davis".

[3][4] She developed an interest in music when she was about ten, and was introduced to various blues musicians by her grandmother, Beulah Blackwell, while staying at her farm in Reidsville, North Carolina.

[10] The seeds of her musical career were planted through her friendship with soul singer Lou Courtney, who reputedly produced her first single, "The Cellar", though the existence of that record has been questioned.

She featured on the cover of Miles Davis's 1968 album Filles de Kilimanjaro, which included his tribute to her, "Mademoiselle Mabry", and she introduced him to psychedelic rock and the flamboyant clothing styles of the era.

[2][10] In the spring of 1969, Betty returned to Columbia's 52nd St. Studios to record a series of demo tracks, with Miles and Teo Macero producing.

Instead, she recorded her own songs with a group of West Coast funk musicians including Larry Graham, Greg Errico, the Pointer Sisters, and members of Tower of Power.

[19][20] Davis remained a cult figure as a singer, due in part to her unabashedly sexual lyrics and performance style, which were both controversial for the time.

Both reissues contained extensive liner notes and shed some light on the mystery of why her fourth album, considered possibly to be her best work by members of her last band (Herbie Hancock, Chuck Rainey, and Alphonse Mouzon), was shelved and remained unreleased for 33 years.

[29] An independent documentary directed by Phil Cox entitled Betty: They Say I'm Different was released in 2017, which renewed interest in her life and music career.

"[25] In 2019, Davis released "A Little Bit Hot Tonight", her first new song in more than 40 years, which was performed and sung by Danielle Maggio, an ethnomusicologist who was a close friend and associate producer on Betty: They Say I'm Different.

In his autobiography, Miles credited Betty with helping to plant the seeds of his further musical explorations by introducing the trumpeter to psychedelic rock guitarist Jimi Hendrix and funk innovator Sly Stone.

[15] The Miles Davis album Filles de Kilimanjaro (1968) features Betty on the cover and includes a song named after her.

[35] In his autobiography, Miles said Betty was "too young and wild", and accused her of having an affair with Jimi Hendrix, which hastened the end of their marriage.

The influence of Hendrix and especially Sly Stone on Miles Davis was obvious on the album Bitches Brew (1970), which ushered in the era of jazz fusion.

[1][24][41] The live action/animated TV series Mike Judge Presents: Tales from the Tour Bus ended its 2018 season with an episode focusing on Davis' controversial career.

[42] Davis' music has been featured in television series including Orange Is the New Black,[43] Girlboss,[44] Mixed-ish,[45] High Fidelity[46] and Pistol.