A locally famous country and blues singer from Austin, Texas, has passed away and left that city and its music scene in mourning.

Toni Price, a mainstay for decades in the city's clubs and an inductee into Austin's Hall of Fame, died on Friday at the age of 63, according to local ABC affiliate KVUE.

Her death was reported to have been a result of complications from a brain aneurysm.

Sad news for fans

The singer's website declared that "Austin, Texas-based singer Toni Price has left the stage, cleared the dance floor and made her final toast. She passed away peacefully on Nov. 22, 2024 following complications from a brain aneurysm."

"The Austin Music Hall of Famer and quintessential Pisces carved her own path, completely unencumbered by and uninterested in the 'music industry,' and the legacy she leaves behind is likewise her very own," the message continued.

The website revealed that Price is survived by her two daughters, Amber and Della, and two grandchildren, along with a few close friends.

The family directed that any donations made in her memory should go toward Hospice Austin's Christopher House, which was thanked by the family for the care that its staff had provided for Toni.

A fixture in Austin's music scene for decades

Price was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1961 and was named Luiese Esther Price, but after her family moved to Nashville, Tennessee, while she was a child, she changed her name to "Toni" when she performed in a talent show and wowed organizers with her singing abilities.

She became involved in Nashville's country music scene and even released a few songs but eventually relocated to Austin, Texas, and found that she fit in better with that city's blues music scene, according to The Austin Chronicle.

For the next several decades, Austin's nightclubs were Price's home, where she often collaborated with other artists and entertained a loyal fan base that would come to see her from all over, given that she never embarked on any national or regional tours.

She essentially established a residency that rotated between some of those clubs, including the Continental Club, where for more than 20 years Price hosted a weekly "Hippie Hour" on Tuesdays that would feature her singing along with a variety of local or visiting musicians.

A singer, but not a songwriter

The Chronicle noted that Price released several albums over the years, had a few popular singles that charted, and received a slew of local music awards that were capped by her induction into Austin's Hall of Fame in 2017.

Notably, she accomplished that without ever writing a single song of her own, which did not bother her, as she was happy to collaborate with other artists and lend her voice to their written words and music.

Of songwriting, she once said, "Even if I change the song, I never take the credit. I can put a dress on, take it up, put on jewelry, a belt, whatever, but I didn't make the dress. And I'm amazed at songwriters. It's a sacred mystery, what they do. Some people open their mouths to sing and that's what I do."