Ella Washington, also known as Ella Washington Cobbs, was born on October 25, 1943, in Miami, Florida. She emerged as a notable figure in the Southern soul and R&B music scene during the 1960s and early 1970s. Washington's career began in 1965 when she recorded for the local Octavia label. Her single "The Grass Always Seems Greener" was leased to Atlantic Records but did not achieve commercial success.

In 1967, Washington started recording for the Sound Stage 7 label in Nashville, Tennessee, where her records were often produced by radio disc jockey John Richbourg and recorded in Muscle Shoals, Alabama. Her most successful single, "He Called Me Baby," a reworking of a song by Harlan Howard, reached #77 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #38 on the Billboard R&B chart in 1969. Despite this being her only hit, she released an LP titled "Ella Washington" in the same year and continued to release singles through 1972.

In 1973, Washington transitioned from secular to gospel music. She performed "Amazing Grace" and "Because He Lives" at John Richbourg's funeral in 1986. By 2009, she had become a pastor at Theos Ministries church in Opa-locka, Miami-Dade County, Florida.

A compilation of her work, "Nobody But Me," was released in 1987 by Charly Records, and a CD of her Sound Stage 7 recordings, "He Called Me Baby," was issued by the Soulscape label in 2009. Washington's powerful vocal style and dynamic range made her a beloved figure in the soul music community, despite the limited commercial success of her recordings.