Through her own hard work and her wonderful voice she first mastered thesinging of courtly Taarab; songs of the palace, in praise of the Ruler, and sung in Arabic. She then translated those rhythmic and poetic structures onto popular tunes.The result, Swahili Taarab, made her a star and created a new art form, which is still very popular in the Islands and practically indispensable at Zanzibari weddings and festivals.

It was in fact ironically an Arab from the landed gentry who bestowed the title 'Siti' on her, Siti meaning "Lady". She rose to fame as a taarab singer in the 1920s and remained active until she died in 1950. Although her parents were born in Zanzibar, her father was a Mnyamwezi and her mother was a Mzigua, both mainland ethnic groups. The family was poor, relying for their livelihood on her father's small scale farming and her mother's pottery, a skill which Siti herself learned and practiced. Siti did not attend school, nor, by all accounts, did she attend any Koran school (madrasa). In 1911 she moved from Fumba to Zanzibar town. This was not an unusual move for the time between 1910 and 1920 where many people moved to town where prospects of financial advancement were more attractive. In town she met musicians such as the Oud player Muhsin Ali, who taught her Arabic and helped her train her voice. Some of the musicians in Ikhwani Safaa apparently worked with her, Shaib Abeid being one of them. As a woman, however, she was never permitted to join the club. She later joined up with other established musicians, namely: Subeti Ambari (Oud) Buda Swedi (Gambusi and Violin), Mwalimu Shaaban (Tari and Vocals), Buda bin Mwendo (Violin) and Mbaruku Effandi (violin). Together they performed for Zanzibar's wealthy (primarily Arab) populace, and soon 'no occasion was deemed successful, be it a wedding or celebration of birth, among Zanzibar's elite, without Siti's performance'.

By roughly 1928 Siti's fame was such that she was invited by the Columbia and his Master's Voice to record in Bombay (now Mumbai). She recorded songs in Arabic but also, more importantly, in Swahili. It was due to wide circulation of these Swahili discs that her name became so highly acclaimed. Siti bint Saad became the first East African to make commercial recordings in the late 1920's. Between 1928 and 1939, she was so successful that recording studios were built on the island of Zanzibar specifically for her. The records sold an average of 800 to 900 records in the first two years; a total of 72,000 records were sold up to mid-1931. Even though only the wealthy could afford gramophones and discs, her songs nevertheless influenced a large proportion of the general population. Her fame spread across all of East Africa, and people in Africa and beyond enjoyed her music. It is estimated that she made over 150 78-rpm records, which are nearly impossible to find today.

While recording in Bombay, Siti bint Saad met the great Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum who was also there for recording. She introduced a form of Indian dance and mime into taarab performances, which in Zanzibar became to be known as natiki (possibly from the general Hindi term of dance, natak). Her favourite songs in Arabic were Khaif, which at that time was sung by Ummu Kulthum of Egypt, Wahayatak, Kam Bathna Maa Nasimu Salama and Barhum ya Barhum. On the spot composition of poetry was an important feature of Swahili poetry and taarab. Apart form the fact that Siti was undisputedly a great singer, she was also a phenomenon that greatly influenced the course of Taarab. For the majority of the African population, Taarab began with Siti.

Prior to her and her records these people had no access to the music. This was the first step towards the 'Africanization' of taarab. The standard instrumentation on the recordings made by Siti bint Saad and her group in the 1930s consisted of an Oud, one or two Violins, a Dumbak and a Rika. Siti herself could play Tari or Rika. Her singing style and performance abilities are still held up as a yard-stick against which today's Taarab artists are judged.