Betty Jackson King was born in 1928 in Chicago. She loved music from a young age, learning first from her mother, Gertrude Jackson Taylor, and her father, Reverend Frederick D. Jackson. They introduced her to church hymns and spirituals. Betty also formed a singing group called the Jacksonian Trio with her mother and sister, Catherine. In 1969, she became one of the first Black teachers at Wildwood High School in New Jersey. Betty was married to Vincent King and had a daughter named Rochelle. She passed away on June 1, 1994, in Wildwood, New Jersey. Betty studied music seriously and earned a bachelor's degree in piano and a master's degree in composition from the Chicago Musical College of Roosevelt University. She took lessons in voice, composition, and piano with well-known teachers. Betty also went to several other schools to improve her musical skills. She worked as a teacher at different schools and was known for her hard work. She received a Teaching Recognition Award from New Jersey Governor Thomas Kean. Betty led the National Association of Negro Musicians as president from 1970 to 1984 and retired from teaching in 1989. Betty Jackson King's music is mostly known for her vocal works and is linked to the early Chicago classical style. Her music often used rich harmonies, layered sounds, and dense chords. She wrote a wide variety of pieces, including spirituals, operas, cantatas, requiems, ballets, and both chamber and choral music. Some of her well-known works are "Saul of Tarsus," "My Servant Job," "Simon of Cyrene," and solo keyboard works like "Nuptial Suite" and "Aftermath (A Tone Poem)."