Her father, a shoemaker who hailed from the village of Goshakilsa (presently in the Bolnisi Municipality, Georgia),[1] noticed her musical gift when Shovkat was six years old.

In 1910, he managed to find a sponsor, who agreed to promote her talent at a banquet organized by the vice-regent of the Caucasus, Count Illarion Vorontsov-Dashkov.

Glière showed keen interest in Azeri folk music and Mammadova's acquaintanceship resulted in his visit to the Karabakh region, where he got to meet with a number of professional mugham performers.

Beginning in 1921, Mammadova toured Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Paris, Milan, Tabriz, and Tbilisi performing arias from La traviata, The Barber of Seville, Rigoletto, Les Huguenots, etc.

In 1923, Shovkat Mammadova founded the Musical Notes Publishing House as well as the Baku Theatrical College (nowadays known as the Azerbaijan State University of Culture and Arts).