Irene Reid was born and raised in Savannah, Georgia. She sang in church and in high school in Georgia. and moved to New York City in 1947 after her mother died. Near the end of 1947, she tied out for an amateur contest at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, and won the competition for five straight weeks. Soon after she was offered a spot as the featured vocalist with Dick Vance at the Savoy Ballroom, which she held from 1948-1950.

From 1961-62, Reid sang with Count Basie's orchestra, and recorded for Verve Records. She later performed in a Broadway production of the musical The Wiz. Ms. Reid recorded in the 1970s and 80s, and launched a comeback near the end of that decade. She appeared at the Savannah Jazz Festival in 1991, 1994, and 1996, and continued releasing albums on Savant Records in the 1990s and 2000s.