Patti LaBelle
Encyclopedia
Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards (born May 24, 1944), better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry. LaBelle spent 16 years as lead singer of Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles
, who changed their name to Labelle in the early 1970s and released the iconic disco
song, "Lady Marmalade
".
LaBelle started her solo career shortly after the group disbanded in 1977 and crossed over to pop music
with "On My Own", "If Only You Knew
", "If You Asked Me To
", "Stir It Up
" and "New Attitude
". She has also recorded R&B ballads such as "You Are My Friend
" and "Love, Need and Want You
".
Despite her shyness, Holte was known for her gifted voice even as a child. After first joining her church choir at ten, she sung her first solo at the Beulah Baptist Church at the age of twelve. Growing up, Holt listened not only to gospel
, but jazz and rhythm and blues
. By her teens, "Patsy", as friends and family called her, also began listening to doo-wop
and was encouraged to form a girl group in the late fifties. In 1958, she formed The Ordettes with three other friends. The following year, when two members of the group dropped out, singers Nona Hendryx
and Sarah Dash
, from a former rival group, joined them. Eventually with Cindy Birdsong
included in the lineup by 1961 and with respected music impresario Bernard Montague managing them, the group gained a reputation around Philadelphia and soon caught the eye of a record scout, who introduced them to Newtown Records president Harold Robinson.
After hearing Holte's voice during an audition, Robinson, who nearly ditched the group due to their looks - he allegedly thought Holt was "too plain and dark" to lead a singing group, agreed to sign the group, renaming them The Blue Belles (the name would simply be The Bluebelles by the mid-1960s), after a Newtown subsidiary label.
", though the song was recorded by another girl group, the Chicago
-based The Starlets
. This led to a lawsuit by a manager of the group and its record label boss, later resulting in the group winning $5,000 in damages. "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" eventually reached the Billboard top 20
. Despite this credited success, the group could not follow up with any other hit. The Blue Belles supported themselves by constantly touring including an appearance at the Apollo Theater
.
In 1963, a record label executive sued Harold Robinson for use of the name Blue Belles, since another group was using the name. As a result, Robinson gave Holt the nickname, Patti La Belle (La Belle is French
for "the beautiful one") and the group's name was altered to Patti La Belle And Her Blue Belles. A year later, the group left Newtown switching over to Cameo-Parkway Records
. Their first hit for Cameo-Parkway was the top 40 hit, "Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)
". Their follow-ups included "You'll Never Walk Alone
" and "Danny Boy
".
In 1965, Atlantic Records
president Ahmet Ertegun
signed the group to the label, working with the group for a year. The group issued their first studio album (as Patti LaBelle and The Bluebelles) titled Somewhere Over the Rainbow in 1966. While they had a modest pop charted hit with "All or Nothing" and its b-side, a pop cover of Judy Garland
's "Over The Rainbow
", the group was not as successful as the label predicted. In 1967, their second release, Dreamer, issued two singles, "Take Me For A Little While" and the Curtis Mayfield
standard, "I'm Still Waiting". In the middle of touring for that album, Cindy Birdsong suddenly left the group to join The Supremes
after replacing Florence Ballard
. The remaining trio of LaBelle, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash struggled with subsequent recordings and by 1970, Atlantic had dropped the group from its roster, as had longtime manager Bernard Montague, who had by now focused his full energy on more successful Philly groups such as The Delfonics
and The Stylistics
.
After almost signing a management deal with Frankie Crocker and Herb Hamlett, the group settled on British manager Vicki Wickham (producer of the UK pop show, Ready, Steady, Go!) after Dusty Springfield
had mentioned signing them. Wickham advised the group to perform in London and work on a brand new image and sound. LaBelle would later have disagreements with Wickham over changes often saying in interviews that she liked things the way they were. This led to some musical disagreements between LaBelle and Nona Hendryx.
. In mid-1971, the group released their Warner debut, Labelle. The record mixed harder-edged soul music
with rock music
elements, a marked departure from the pop sound of the Blue Belles. The album failed to catch on, as did their 1972 follow-up, Moon Shadow. The group, however, did find success singing alongside Laura Nyro
on her acclaimed album, Gonna Take a Miracle
. The group would tour with Nyro off and on for the next couple of years.
In 1973, Wickham had the group signed to RCA Records
, where they recorded the Pressure Cookin' album. In the middle of recording, LaBelle gave birth to her only child, Zuri. While promoting the album opening for The Rolling Stones
, Wickham advised the group to adapt the same flamboyant costumes of rock artists such as T. Rex
, Elton John
and David Bowie
. Soon, their own stage entrances started to take a life on its own, at one point the group members flew into the concert stage, while singing. Despite this change in direction, their third album failed to become a success. However, a scout for Epic Records
advised the group to sign with them in 1974 at the end of the Rolling Stones tour.
Later that year, Labelle issued their most acclaimed album, Nightbirds
. In October 1974, the group made history by becoming the first pop group to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House
. In late December, Epic issued the single, "Lady Marmalade
". Within six months, the record became a smash and reached number-one on the Billboard Hot 100, the group's first to do so. This helped their album sell over a million copies. Their fame was so massive during this time that they made the cover of Rolling Stone later in 1975.
Later in 1975, the group issued their follow-up, Phoenix, which did not quite catch on as fast though it was critically raved. They had a little more success with the Chameleon album in 1976, with the songs, "Get You Somebody New" and "Isn't It A Shame", the latter song Patti LaBelle would say was "the last record we ever did together". Despite her success, LaBelle was not pleased at the group's direction and by late 1976, neither LaBelle, Dash and Hendryx could agree on a musical direction. Following a concert in Baltimore in December 1976, LaBelle advised the others to break up.
", a song she and her husband co-wrote. Her subsequent follow-ups, however, 1978's Tasty
, 1979's It's Alright with Me
and 1980's Released
, failed to be as successful. Though well-established in some circles, LaBelle never follow her live performance success with hit records, which was often the case with the Bluebelles. In 1981, she was switched to the CBS
subsidiary, Philadelphia International Records
, issuing the album, The Spirit's In It
.
LaBelle found success outside music, performing in the Broadway revival of Your Arm's Too Short to Box with God, with Al Green
. However, the play was criticized mainly because of what critics felt was vocal showboating by Green and LaBelle, criticism that LaBelle did not take lightly. In 1982, she recorded the Grover Washington ballad, "The Best Is Yet To Come
", which led to her first top 20 R&B hit and her first Grammy nomination in the spring of 1983. Later that year, LaBelle appeared in the PBS-produced play, Working. In October 1983, the mid-tempo love song, "If Only You Knew
", was released. The parent album, I'm In Love Again
, was released the following month. In January 1984, "If Only You Knew" reached number-one on the Hot R&B Singles
chart, where it stayed for four weeks. The song became LaBelle's first charted hit on the Billboard Hot 100
as a solo artist, reaching the lower regions of the top fifty, peaking at number 46. The success of that single and its similar-sounding follow-up, "Love, Need and Want You
", which reached number ten on the R&B chart, helped I'm in Love Again, reached gold in the U.S.
Later in 1984, LaBelle appeared in her first film, A Soldier's Story
. Her appearance in the film later led to Steven Spielberg
handpicking her for the role of Shug Avery on The Color Purple
, but she turned it down due to hearing that there was a nude scene and same-sex kissing. LaBelle would later regret her decision to turn down the role, after Margaret Avery
won an Academy Award nomination for her role as Shug. In the fall of 1984, LaBelle recorded the songs, "New Attitude
" and "Stir It Up
", later issued for the soundtrack of Beverly Hills Cop
, released in December 1984. The soundtrack became a hit, thanks to the releases of "New Attitude" and "Stir It Up". The former single reached as high as number seventeen on the Hot 100 and was number-one on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart in the spring of 1985, introducing LaBelle to pop audiences. In 1985, LaBelle left Philadelphia International signing a lucrative contract with MCA
. PIR issued the final contractual LaBelle album, Patti. The album was not successful.
LaBelle garnered headlines in 1985 for her showstopping, and some say, purposely show-stealing performances, first at Motown Returns to the Apollo engaging in the so-called "infamous mic toss" between her and Diana Ross
during the show's finale, to the Foreigner
song, "I Want to Know What Love Is
". LaBelle later alleged that Ross grabbed the microphone away from LaBelle following her taking over the lead, though someone else gave LaBelle another microphone where she finished singing. That same year, LaBelle was accused again of showboating, after singing in the finale of Live Aid
to "We Are the World
" so loud that she sounded as the only audible singer. Due to this press, she was given her own television special later that fall. In 1986, LaBelle released her eighth album, Winner in You
, which peaked at number-one on the Billboard 200
on the strength of the pop hit, "On My Own", a duet with singer Michael McDonald
. The song became LaBelle's first number-one hit since "Lady Marmalade". Winner in You eventually sold a million copies, becoming platinum. It remains her best-selling album. LaBelle took a break in 1988, re-emerging with Be Yourself
, in 1989. The album went gold thanks to LaBelle's soft rock
ballad, "If You Asked Me To
". In 1989, LaBelle also sang the role of "the Acid Queen" in The Who's star-studded performance of TOMMY in Los Angeles.
Her 1991 album, Burnin'
, resulted in LaBelle's first Grammy win for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
, and spawned three top ten hits on Billboard's R&B chart also selling half a million copies becoming her third gold album. Her 1994 album, Gems and 1997 follow-up, Flame, also were certified gold and LaBelle's 1990s singles, "The Right Kinda Lover" and "When You Talk About Love" hit number-one on the dance charts. She won a second Grammy in 1998 for her live album, One Night Only! Following the announcement of the end of her marriage to her husband, Armstead Edwards, who also dismissed himself as LaBelle's manager after more than 20 years, LaBelle released the ballad-heavy When A Woman Loves album in 2000. LaBelle would not release another album until, after signing with the Def Jam Records imprint, Def Soul Classics, she released Timeless Journey, in 2004. The album became her highest-charted album in eighteen years. In 2005 a follow-up album, Classic Moments, was released. Shortly after LaBelle left Def Jam Records in 2006 over a public dispute with Antonio "L.A." Reid. She released her first gospel album, The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle
,which was #1 on the gospel billboard charts on the Bungalo label. She returned to Def Jam in 2007 and released her second holiday album, Miss Patti's Christmas. As of 2011, LaBelle has yet to release a new solo album. In 2008, LaBelle briefly reunited with Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash as Labelle on the group's first new album in over thirty years, Back to Now
.
Following her roles in A Soldier's Story and Sing, LaBelle won a recurring role as Kadeem Hardison
's mother on the hit show, A Different World. In 1992, following her success on the sitcom and responding to the success of rapper Will Smith
's Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, LaBelle starred in her own sitcom, Out All Night. The show was cancelled after only 19 episodes. In 1993, she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and two years afterwards, performed at the Super Bowl
half time show. For a period, LaBelle's theme song for The Oprah Winfrey Show
, titled "Get With the Program", proved to be popular along with its catchphrase. In 2003, she starred in her own lifestyle show, Livin' It Up With Patti LaBelle, which aired for three years on the TV-One channel. In 1996, LaBelle issued her autobiography, Don't Block the Blessings. She released her first of five cookbooks in 1997, and in 2006, released the book, Patti's Pearls. In addition, LaBelle began to sell collections of spices, lipstick and even wigs on her website. Her "Patti Labelle"wig collection,-featured in Especially Yours wig catalogs-.
On September 14, 2010, LaBelle made a return two decades after her last Broadway performance to star in the award-winning musical Fela!
about Afrobeat
legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. LaBelle replaced Tony Award
-nominee Lillias White
as Fela's mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and remained with the production through the end of its run on January 2, 2011.
On May 23, 2011, LaBelle appeared on "Oprah's Farewell Spectacular, Part 1” the first show in a series of three shows constituting the finale of The Oprah Winfrey Show
, singing "Over the Rainbow
" with Josh Groban
.
LaBelle was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards
on June 26, 2011.
She performed for Obama at the 9/11 tribute, singing "Two Steps Away." She received a standing ovation, after she walked away from the microphone and continued to be heard.
. In 1969, she married Armstead Edwards. In July 1973, their first and only child, Zuri Kye Edwards, was born. In the late 1970s, Labelle and Edwards adopted two teenage boys, Stanley and Todd, the children of their next-door neighbor, after their mother died of cancer. Following the death of her youngest sister Jackie Padgett, Labelle raised Padgett's teenage children. Following the disbanding of the group Labelle in 1976, Edwards, who was a schoolteacher, took over as his wife's manager. In 2000, the couple announced their separation. Their divorce was finalized in 2001. LaBelle's son Zuri has since taken over as her manager.
Her youngest sister Jackie Padgett became president of her sister's fan club in the early 1980s. When Jackie later died of lung cancer in 1989, LaBelle dedicated her 1991 album, Burnin'
, to Padgett and filmed the video for "If You Asked Me To" a day after her funeral. Her two other sisters, Vivian and Barbara preceded Jackie in death, dying of cancer themselves. LaBelle was diagnosed with diabetes in 1992. Prior to her marriage to Edwards, LaBelle was once engaged to Temptations
singer Otis Williams
breaking it off due to conflicting schedules.
In June 2011 a West Point cadet filed civil suit against LaBelle after he was allegedly assaulted by her bodyguards at Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston in March. Houston police department
is reviewing the conduct of officers responding to the incident after they posed for photographs with the singer, but also filed assault charges against members of her entourage and warrants were issued. In September 2011, the cadet, who had initially been suspended from West Point for his involvement in the altercation, was allowed back in West Point.
However a Houston Police Department report on the incident, tells a different story. According to HPD, they went to the scene after reports of an assault.Officers were told that the limo driver went into Terminal C to pick up some luggage, and when he came out, he noticed a man standing by the limo, apparently harassing the occupants.The limo driver said the man may have been intoxicated.
"I had some drinks on the plane, but I mean, I wasn’t anywhere near intoxicated or anything along those lines," King told KHOU 11 News.
At some point, the limo driver told police King swung at him, punching him in the face.When the limo driver pushed back, he said the man fell and hit his head on the curb.According to the police report, when officers tried to question King, he said he didn’t know what happened and didn’t remember anything.
King’s lawsuit also includes the airport itself and a taxi dispatcher for allegedly failing to provide a safe, secure environment for patrons.King is seeking both actual and punitive damages, as well as attorney fees and court costs, but a dollar amount was not specified in the lawsuit.
In November 2011, LaBelle was sued by a woman named Roseanna Monk, from New York, after LaBelle allegedly hurled insults at her for allowing her then 18-month-old daughter to walk steps away from her at an apartment lobby where LaBelle was renting during her appearance on Fela! in November 2010. According to the lawsuit, after Monk reportedly told LaBelle it was none of her business as to why the child was "scampering", she allegedly threw water at Monk and her child. Even though Monk filed a police report, MS Labelle was never arrested over the alleged incident. Monk and her husband have stated that Ms Labelle needs to be taught a lesson.
Television
Labelle
Labelle is an American all female singing group who were a popular vocal group of the 1960s and 1970s. The group was formed after the disbanding of two rival girl groups in the Philadelphia/Trenton areas, the Ordettes and the Del-Capris, forming as a new version of the former group, later changing...
, who changed their name to Labelle in the early 1970s and released the iconic disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
song, "Lady Marmalade
Lady Marmalade
"Lady Marmalade" was also covered by Italian pop star Sabrina. It was released in 1987 as the album's second single by Baby Records. In some countries, including France and the Netherlands, the song was known as "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? " and was released in 1988.-Track listings:7" maxi#...
".
LaBelle started her solo career shortly after the group disbanded in 1977 and crossed over to pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
with "On My Own", "If Only You Knew
If Only You Knew
If Only You Knew was a single written and produced primarily by Dexter Wansel and Cynthia Biggs for American singer Patti LaBelle's sixth solo album, I'm in Love Again. It was released as the album's official first single in 1983, spending four weeks at number one on the U.S...
", "If You Asked Me To
If You Asked Me To
"If You Asked Me To" is the title of a song written and originally released as the lead single for Patti LaBelle's seventh solo studio album, entitled Be Yourself, and for the Licence to Kill soundtrack. The song is a ballad written by critically acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren...
", "Stir It Up
Stir It Up (Patti LaBelle song)
"Stir It Up" is the second single from Patti LaBelle taken from the soundtrack album to the 1984 film Beverly Hills Cop -- the latter won a Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special ....
" and "New Attitude
New Attitude (song)
"New Attitude" is a song performed by Patti LaBelle and written by Sharon Teresa Robinson, Jon Gilutin, and Bunny Hull. It was released in January 1985 and helped launch LaBelle's solo career as a pop music singer after the singer had spent seven years without a hit following the break-up of...
". She has also recorded R&B ballads such as "You Are My Friend
You Are My Friend
"You Are My Friend" is a ballad co-written and recorded by American singer Patti LaBelle, released as the second single off her self-titled debut album, in 1978 on the Epic label...
" and "Love, Need and Want You
Love, Need and Want You
"Love, Need and Want You" is a song recorded by Patti LaBelle, released in 1984 as the second single from her album, I'm in Love Again. The song is a mid-tempo R&B number written for LaBelle by accomplished musician Bunny Sigler and Kenny Gamble. Following the success of her breakthrough R&B hit,...
".
Early years
Patricia Louise Holte was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on May 24, 1944. Her father, Henry Holt, was a railroad worker and lounge singer. Her mother, Bertha Holt, was a domestic and housewife. Holt was one of four daughters (Vivian, Barbara, Patricia and Jacqueline). Holt recalls having a happy childhood but said being sexually molested at the age of seven led her to be shy and withdrawn. Holt's parents had an unhappy marriage. When Holt was twelve, her parents split up and Bertha Holt raised her daughters as a single mother. Holt's mother later adopted Claudette Grant, who would become one of Holt's closest friends.Despite her shyness, Holte was known for her gifted voice even as a child. After first joining her church choir at ten, she sung her first solo at the Beulah Baptist Church at the age of twelve. Growing up, Holt listened not only to gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
, but jazz and rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
. By her teens, "Patsy", as friends and family called her, also began listening to doo-wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
and was encouraged to form a girl group in the late fifties. In 1958, she formed The Ordettes with three other friends. The following year, when two members of the group dropped out, singers Nona Hendryx
Nona Hendryx
Nona Hendryx is an American vocalist, producer, songwriter, musician, author, and actress.Hendryx is known for her work as a solo artist as well as for being one-third of the trio Labelle, who had a hit with "Lady Marmalade." Her music has ranged from soul, funk, dance, and R&B to hard rock, art...
and Sarah Dash
Sarah Dash
Sarah Dash is a singer and actress. Her first notable appearance on the music scene was as a member of Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles...
, from a former rival group, joined them. Eventually with Cindy Birdsong
Cindy Birdsong
Cynthia Ann "Cindy" Birdsong , better known by her stage name, Cindy Birdsong, is an American singer, most famous for singing with the legendary soul groups Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles and The Supremes.-Early life:...
included in the lineup by 1961 and with respected music impresario Bernard Montague managing them, the group gained a reputation around Philadelphia and soon caught the eye of a record scout, who introduced them to Newtown Records president Harold Robinson.
After hearing Holte's voice during an audition, Robinson, who nearly ditched the group due to their looks - he allegedly thought Holt was "too plain and dark" to lead a singing group, agreed to sign the group, renaming them The Blue Belles (the name would simply be The Bluebelles by the mid-1960s), after a Newtown subsidiary label.
Early career
Not long after signing, the group was credited for the hit single, "I Sold My Heart to the JunkmanI Sold My Heart to the Junkman
"I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" is a 1962 hit single by The Blue Belles, written by Jimmie Thomas. The song is notable for having been originally recorded by another group and conflicting schedules leading the future Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles group to claim the song as their own...
", though the song was recorded by another girl group, the Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
-based The Starlets
The Starlets
The Starlets were an American girl group from Chicago, Illinois.The group came together in 1961, and auditioned for a Chicago songwriter, Bernice Williams. Williams wrote them the tune "Better Tell Him No", which was released on Pam Records that year. The record peaked at #38 on the Billboard Hot...
. This led to a lawsuit by a manager of the group and its record label boss, later resulting in the group winning $5,000 in damages. "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman" eventually reached the Billboard top 20
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. Despite this credited success, the group could not follow up with any other hit. The Blue Belles supported themselves by constantly touring including an appearance at the Apollo Theater
Apollo Theater
The Apollo Theater in New York City is one of the most famous, and older, music halls in the United States, and the most famous club associated almost exclusively with Black performers...
.
In 1963, a record label executive sued Harold Robinson for use of the name Blue Belles, since another group was using the name. As a result, Robinson gave Holt the nickname, Patti La Belle (La Belle is French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
for "the beautiful one") and the group's name was altered to Patti La Belle And Her Blue Belles. A year later, the group left Newtown switching over to Cameo-Parkway Records
Cameo-Parkway Records
Cameo-Parkway Records was the parent company of Cameo Records and Parkway Records, which were major American Philadelphia-based record labels from 1956 and 1958 to 1967...
. Their first hit for Cameo-Parkway was the top 40 hit, "Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)
Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)
"Down the Aisle " is a doo-wop ballad recorded and released by girl group Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles in 1963. The song became a hit success for the Philadelphia-based vocal group following the controversial release of their "debut hit", 1962's "I Sold My Heart to the Junkman".-Background:By...
". Their follow-ups included "You'll Never Walk Alone
You'll Never Walk Alone
You'll Never Walk Alone is a song from the musical Carousel, a pop standard and football club anthem, for example that of Liverpool F.C.You'll Never Walk Alone may also refer to:* You'll Never Walk Alone , studio album...
" and "Danny Boy
Danny Boy
-Background:The words to "Danny Boy" were written by English lawyer and lyricist Frederic Weatherly in 1910. Although the lyrics were originally written for a different tune, Weatherly modified them to fit the "Londonderry Air" in 1913, after his sister-in-law in the U.S. sent him a copy. Ernestine...
".
In 1965, Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
president Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegun
Ahmet Ertegün was a Turkish American musician and businessman, best known as the founder and president of Atlantic Records. He also wrote classic blues and pop songs and served as Chairman of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and museum...
signed the group to the label, working with the group for a year. The group issued their first studio album (as Patti LaBelle and The Bluebelles) titled Somewhere Over the Rainbow in 1966. While they had a modest pop charted hit with "All or Nothing" and its b-side, a pop cover of Judy Garland
Judy Garland
Judy Garland was an American actress and singer. Through a career that spanned 45 of her 47 years and for her renowned contralto voice, she attained international stardom as an actress in musical and dramatic roles, as a recording artist and on the concert stage...
's "Over The Rainbow
Over the Rainbow
"Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
", the group was not as successful as the label predicted. In 1967, their second release, Dreamer, issued two singles, "Take Me For A Little While" and the Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Mayfield
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American soul, R&B, and funk singer, songwriter, and record producer.He is best known for his anthemic music with The Impressions during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960's and for composing the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film Super Fly, Mayfield is highly...
standard, "I'm Still Waiting". In the middle of touring for that album, Cindy Birdsong suddenly left the group to join The Supremes
The Supremes
The Supremes, an American female singing group, were the premier act of Motown Records during the 1960s.Originally founded as The Primettes in Detroit, Michigan, in 1959, The Supremes' repertoire included doo-wop, pop, soul, Broadway show tunes, psychedelic soul, and disco...
after replacing Florence Ballard
Florence Ballard
Florence Glenda Ballard Chapman was an American singer and a founding member of the Motown group The Supremes. From 1963 until 1967, Ballard sang on 16 Top 40 hit Supremes' singles, ten of which hit number-one on the Billboard Hot 100. In 1967, Motown CEO Berry Gordy decided to remove Ballard from...
. The remaining trio of LaBelle, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash struggled with subsequent recordings and by 1970, Atlantic had dropped the group from its roster, as had longtime manager Bernard Montague, who had by now focused his full energy on more successful Philly groups such as The Delfonics
The Delfonics
The Delfonics are a pioneering Philadelphia soul singing group, most popular in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Their most notable hits include "La-La ", "Didn't I ", "Break Your Promise," "I'm Sorry," and "Ready or Not Here I Come "...
and The Stylistics
The Stylistics
The Stylistics are a soul music vocal group, and were one of the best-known Philadelphia soul groups of the 1970s. They formed in 1968, and were composed of lead Russell Thompkins, Jr., Herbie Murrell, Airrion Love, James Smith, and James Dunn. All of their US hits were ballads, graced by the...
.
After almost signing a management deal with Frankie Crocker and Herb Hamlett, the group settled on British manager Vicki Wickham (producer of the UK pop show, Ready, Steady, Go!) after Dusty Springfield
Dusty Springfield
Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'BrienSources use both Isabel and Isobel as the spelling of her second name. OBE , known professionally as Dusty Springfield and dubbed The White Queen of Soul, was a British pop singer whose career extended from the late 1950s to the 1990s...
had mentioned signing them. Wickham advised the group to perform in London and work on a brand new image and sound. LaBelle would later have disagreements with Wickham over changes often saying in interviews that she liked things the way they were. This led to some musical disagreements between LaBelle and Nona Hendryx.
Labelle
In late 1970, the group returned to the U.S. changing their name to Labelle and signing a contract with Warner Bros imprint, Track Records. Wickham then had the group open for rock group The WhoThe Who
The Who are an English rock band formed in 1964 by Roger Daltrey , Pete Townshend , John Entwistle and Keith Moon . They became known for energetic live performances which often included instrument destruction...
. In mid-1971, the group released their Warner debut, Labelle. The record mixed harder-edged soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
with rock music
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
elements, a marked departure from the pop sound of the Blue Belles. The album failed to catch on, as did their 1972 follow-up, Moon Shadow. The group, however, did find success singing alongside Laura Nyro
Laura Nyro
Laura Nyro was an American songwriter, singer, and pianist. She achieved considerable critical acclaim with her own recordings, particularly the albums Eli and the Thirteenth Confession and New York Tendaberry, and had commercial success with artists such as Barbra Streisand and The 5th...
on her acclaimed album, Gonna Take a Miracle
Gonna Take a Miracle
Gonna Take a Miracle is the fifth music album by New York-born singer, songwriter, and pianist Laura Nyro. Nyro was backed up on the album by the vocal trio Labelle....
. The group would tour with Nyro off and on for the next couple of years.
In 1973, Wickham had the group signed to RCA Records
RCA Records
RCA Records is one of the flagship labels of Sony Music Entertainment. The RCA initials stand for Radio Corporation of America , which was the parent corporation from 1929 to 1985 and a partner from 1985 to 1986.RCA's Canadian unit is Sony's oldest label...
, where they recorded the Pressure Cookin' album. In the middle of recording, LaBelle gave birth to her only child, Zuri. While promoting the album opening for The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
, Wickham advised the group to adapt the same flamboyant costumes of rock artists such as T. Rex
T. Rex (band)
T. Rex were a British rock band, formed in 1967 by singer/songwriter and guitarist Marc Bolan. The band formed as Tyrannosaurus Rex, releasing four folk albums under the name...
, Elton John
Elton John
Sir Elton Hercules John, CBE, Hon DMus is an English rock singer-songwriter, composer, pianist and occasional actor...
and David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
. Soon, their own stage entrances started to take a life on its own, at one point the group members flew into the concert stage, while singing. Despite this change in direction, their third album failed to become a success. However, a scout for Epic Records
Epic Records
Epic Records is an American record label, owned by Sony Music Entertainment. Though it was originally conceived as a jazz imprint, it has since expanded to represent various genres. L.A...
advised the group to sign with them in 1974 at the end of the Rolling Stones tour.
Later that year, Labelle issued their most acclaimed album, Nightbirds
Nightbirds
Nightbirds is an acclaimed album by the all-female singing group Labelle, released in 1974 on the Epic label. Notable for their biggest hit, the number-one song, "Lady Marmalade", it became the group's most successful album to date.-Background:...
. In October 1974, the group made history by becoming the first pop group to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House
Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center)
The Metropolitan Opera House is an opera house located on Broadway at Lincoln Square in the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Part of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, the theater opened in 1966. It replaced the former Metropolitan Opera House at Broadway and 39th St...
. In late December, Epic issued the single, "Lady Marmalade
Lady Marmalade
"Lady Marmalade" was also covered by Italian pop star Sabrina. It was released in 1987 as the album's second single by Baby Records. In some countries, including France and the Netherlands, the song was known as "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? " and was released in 1988.-Track listings:7" maxi#...
". Within six months, the record became a smash and reached number-one on the Billboard Hot 100, the group's first to do so. This helped their album sell over a million copies. Their fame was so massive during this time that they made the cover of Rolling Stone later in 1975.
Later in 1975, the group issued their follow-up, Phoenix, which did not quite catch on as fast though it was critically raved. They had a little more success with the Chameleon album in 1976, with the songs, "Get You Somebody New" and "Isn't It A Shame", the latter song Patti LaBelle would say was "the last record we ever did together". Despite her success, LaBelle was not pleased at the group's direction and by late 1976, neither LaBelle, Dash and Hendryx could agree on a musical direction. Following a concert in Baltimore in December 1976, LaBelle advised the others to break up.
Solo career
LaBelle released her self-titled album in 1977 on Epic. The record was a critical success, with the highlights being the dance singles, "Joy To Have Your Love" and "Dan Swit Me" and the pop-R&B ballad, "You Are My FriendYou Are My Friend
"You Are My Friend" is a ballad co-written and recorded by American singer Patti LaBelle, released as the second single off her self-titled debut album, in 1978 on the Epic label...
", a song she and her husband co-wrote. Her subsequent follow-ups, however, 1978's Tasty
Tasty (Patti LaBelle album)
Tasty is the second solo release by singer Patti LaBelle, her second solo album with Epic Records, since departing from Labelle in 1976. The album was less successful than the debut but became notable for the disco club hit, "Eyes in the Back of My Head" and the airplay-only pop ballad, "Little...
, 1979's It's Alright with Me
It's Alright with Me
It's Alright with Me is the third solo album released by singer Patti LaBelle, her third off her deal with Epic Records released in 1979. After a modestly successful solo debut and a critically acclaimed but commercially maligned sophomore release, LaBelle worked on her third Epic release with...
and 1980's Released
Released (Patti LaBelle album)
Released is the fourth studio solo album released by singer Patti LaBelle. It would turn out to be the final release from LaBelle by Epic Records, who then reassigned her to Philadelphia International the next year...
, failed to be as successful. Though well-established in some circles, LaBelle never follow her live performance success with hit records, which was often the case with the Bluebelles. In 1981, she was switched to the CBS
CBS Records
CBS Records is a record label founded by CBS Corporation in 2006 to take advantage of music from its entertainment properties owned by CBS Television Studios. The initial label roster consisted of only three artists; rock band Señor Happy and singer/songwriters Will Dailey and P.J...
subsidiary, Philadelphia International Records
Philadelphia International Records
Philadelphia International Records is a record label founded by writer-producers, Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff in 1971. It was famous for showcasing the sub-genre of Philadelphia soul music and released a string of worldwide hits during the decade.-History:...
, issuing the album, The Spirit's In It
The Spirit's in It
The Spirit's in It is a 1981 album released by singer Patti LaBelle. The album was her first release off Philadelphia International Records after coming off a four-year contract with Epic Records and four studio albums...
.
LaBelle found success outside music, performing in the Broadway revival of Your Arm's Too Short to Box with God, with Al Green
Al Green
Albert Greene , better known as Al Green, is an American gospel and soul music singer. He reached the peak of his popularity in the 1970s, with hit singles such as "You Oughta Be With Me", "I'm Still In Love With You", "Love and Happiness", and "Let's Stay Together"...
. However, the play was criticized mainly because of what critics felt was vocal showboating by Green and LaBelle, criticism that LaBelle did not take lightly. In 1982, she recorded the Grover Washington ballad, "The Best Is Yet To Come
The Best Is Yet To Come (Grover Washington Jr. song)
"The Best Is Yet To Come" is a 1982 song written by Philadelphia-based songwriters Cynthia Biggs and Dexter Wansel, who also produced the song as a duet between jazz saxophonist Grover Washington, Jr. and American recording artist Patti LaBelle. It was released as a single in February 1983 on...
", which led to her first top 20 R&B hit and her first Grammy nomination in the spring of 1983. Later that year, LaBelle appeared in the PBS-produced play, Working. In October 1983, the mid-tempo love song, "If Only You Knew
If Only You Knew
If Only You Knew was a single written and produced primarily by Dexter Wansel and Cynthia Biggs for American singer Patti LaBelle's sixth solo album, I'm in Love Again. It was released as the album's official first single in 1983, spending four weeks at number one on the U.S...
", was released. The parent album, I'm In Love Again
I'm in Love Again
I'm In Love Again is the sixth solo album released by singer Patti LaBelle in late 1983. Featuring the hits "If Only You Knew" and "Love, Need and Want You", this album is credited with reviving the singer's career after years of chart struggles on both the pop and R&B charts.-History:Patti LaBelle...
, was released the following month. In January 1984, "If Only You Knew" reached number-one on the Hot R&B Singles
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
chart, where it stayed for four weeks. The song became LaBelle's first charted hit on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
as a solo artist, reaching the lower regions of the top fifty, peaking at number 46. The success of that single and its similar-sounding follow-up, "Love, Need and Want You
Love, Need and Want You
"Love, Need and Want You" is a song recorded by Patti LaBelle, released in 1984 as the second single from her album, I'm in Love Again. The song is a mid-tempo R&B number written for LaBelle by accomplished musician Bunny Sigler and Kenny Gamble. Following the success of her breakthrough R&B hit,...
", which reached number ten on the R&B chart, helped I'm in Love Again, reached gold in the U.S.
Later in 1984, LaBelle appeared in her first film, A Soldier's Story
A Soldier's Story
A Soldier's Story is a 1984 drama film directed by Norman Jewison, based upon Charles Fuller's Pulitzer Prize-winning Off Broadway production A Soldier's Play. A black officer is sent to investigate the murder of a black sergeant in Louisiana near the end of World War II...
. Her appearance in the film later led to Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...
handpicking her for the role of Shug Avery on The Color Purple
The Color Purple
The Color Purple is an acclaimed 1982 epistolary novel by American author Alice Walker. It received the 1983 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the National Book Award for Fiction...
, but she turned it down due to hearing that there was a nude scene and same-sex kissing. LaBelle would later regret her decision to turn down the role, after Margaret Avery
Margaret Avery
Margaret Avery is an American actress and singer. She was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for her performance as Shug in The Color Purple .-Early life:...
won an Academy Award nomination for her role as Shug. In the fall of 1984, LaBelle recorded the songs, "New Attitude
New Attitude (song)
"New Attitude" is a song performed by Patti LaBelle and written by Sharon Teresa Robinson, Jon Gilutin, and Bunny Hull. It was released in January 1985 and helped launch LaBelle's solo career as a pop music singer after the singer had spent seven years without a hit following the break-up of...
" and "Stir It Up
Stir It Up (Patti LaBelle song)
"Stir It Up" is the second single from Patti LaBelle taken from the soundtrack album to the 1984 film Beverly Hills Cop -- the latter won a Grammy Award for Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or Television Special ....
", later issued for the soundtrack of Beverly Hills Cop
Beverly Hills Cop
Beverly Hills Cop is a 1984 American comedy-action film directed by Martin Brest and starring Eddie Murphy, Lisa Eilbacher, John Ashton, Judge Reinhold, and Ronny Cox...
, released in December 1984. The soundtrack became a hit, thanks to the releases of "New Attitude" and "Stir It Up". The former single reached as high as number seventeen on the Hot 100 and was number-one on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart in the spring of 1985, introducing LaBelle to pop audiences. In 1985, LaBelle left Philadelphia International signing a lucrative contract with MCA
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003...
. PIR issued the final contractual LaBelle album, Patti. The album was not successful.
LaBelle garnered headlines in 1985 for her showstopping, and some say, purposely show-stealing performances, first at Motown Returns to the Apollo engaging in the so-called "infamous mic toss" between her and Diana Ross
Diana Ross
Diana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
during the show's finale, to the Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
song, "I Want to Know What Love Is
I Want to Know What Love Is
"I Want to Know What Love Is" is a 1984 power ballad recorded by the British-American rock band Foreigner. The song hit #1 in both the UK and the U.S. and is the band's biggest hit...
". LaBelle later alleged that Ross grabbed the microphone away from LaBelle following her taking over the lead, though someone else gave LaBelle another microphone where she finished singing. That same year, LaBelle was accused again of showboating, after singing in the finale of Live Aid
Live Aid
Live Aid was a dual-venue concert that was held on 13 July 1985. The event was organized by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the ongoing Ethiopian famine. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously in Wembley Stadium in London, England, United Kingdom ...
to "We Are the World
We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a song and charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World...
" so loud that she sounded as the only audible singer. Due to this press, she was given her own television special later that fall. In 1986, LaBelle released her eighth album, Winner in You
Winner in You
Winner in You is the eight studio album by American R&B singer Patti LaBelle, released April 28, 1986, on MCA Records. Recording sessions took place during 1984–1985...
, which peaked at number-one on the Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
on the strength of the pop hit, "On My Own", a duet with singer Michael McDonald
Michael McDonald (singer)
Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan...
. The song became LaBelle's first number-one hit since "Lady Marmalade". Winner in You eventually sold a million copies, becoming platinum. It remains her best-selling album. LaBelle took a break in 1988, re-emerging with Be Yourself
Be Yourself (Patti LaBelle album)
Be Yourself marked Patti LaBelle's ninth solo album and her first since 1986's platinum hit, Winner in You, released in 1989 on the MCA label, her second album with the company...
, in 1989. The album went gold thanks to LaBelle's soft rock
Soft rock
Soft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock music to compose a softer, more toned-down sound. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships. The genre tends to make heavy use of acoustic guitars, pianos, synthesizers and sometimes...
ballad, "If You Asked Me To
If You Asked Me To
"If You Asked Me To" is the title of a song written and originally released as the lead single for Patti LaBelle's seventh solo studio album, entitled Be Yourself, and for the Licence to Kill soundtrack. The song is a ballad written by critically acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren...
". In 1989, LaBelle also sang the role of "the Acid Queen" in The Who's star-studded performance of TOMMY in Los Angeles.
Her 1991 album, Burnin'
Burnin' (Patti LaBelle album)
Burnin' is a 1991 album by Patti LaBelle. It won the category of "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" at the Grammy Awards of 1992 jointly with a single by Lisa Fischer, an unusual event in the history of the Grammy Awards....
, resulted in LaBelle's first Grammy win for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for quality R&B songs...
, and spawned three top ten hits on Billboard's R&B chart also selling half a million copies becoming her third gold album. Her 1994 album, Gems and 1997 follow-up, Flame, also were certified gold and LaBelle's 1990s singles, "The Right Kinda Lover" and "When You Talk About Love" hit number-one on the dance charts. She won a second Grammy in 1998 for her live album, One Night Only! Following the announcement of the end of her marriage to her husband, Armstead Edwards, who also dismissed himself as LaBelle's manager after more than 20 years, LaBelle released the ballad-heavy When A Woman Loves album in 2000. LaBelle would not release another album until, after signing with the Def Jam Records imprint, Def Soul Classics, she released Timeless Journey, in 2004. The album became her highest-charted album in eighteen years. In 2005 a follow-up album, Classic Moments, was released. Shortly after LaBelle left Def Jam Records in 2006 over a public dispute with Antonio "L.A." Reid. She released her first gospel album, The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle
The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle
The Gospel According To Patti LaBelle is the first gospel album released by singer Patti LaBelle, released in November 2006.This project began three years ago when Patti's late musical director and close friend Budd Ellison told a skeptical LaBelle that "it's now or never, Patti." The album is...
,which was #1 on the gospel billboard charts on the Bungalo label. She returned to Def Jam in 2007 and released her second holiday album, Miss Patti's Christmas. As of 2011, LaBelle has yet to release a new solo album. In 2008, LaBelle briefly reunited with Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash as Labelle on the group's first new album in over thirty years, Back to Now
Back to Now
Back to Now is the seventh and latest studio album by American R&B female group Labelle, released on October 21, 2008. The album is the group's first in over thirty years though they had sung on songs together on occasion....
.
Following her roles in A Soldier's Story and Sing, LaBelle won a recurring role as Kadeem Hardison
Kadeem Hardison
Kadeem Hardison is an American actor. He is best known for his role as Dwayne Wayne on A Different World, a spin-off of the long-running NBC sitcom The Cosby Show.-Childhood:...
's mother on the hit show, A Different World. In 1992, following her success on the sitcom and responding to the success of rapper Will Smith
Will Smith
Willard Christopher "Will" Smith, Jr. , also known by his stage name The Fresh Prince, is an American actor, producer, and rapper. He has enjoyed success in television, film and music. In April 2007, Newsweek called him the most powerful actor in Hollywood...
's Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, LaBelle starred in her own sitcom, Out All Night. The show was cancelled after only 19 episodes. In 1993, she earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and two years afterwards, performed at the Super Bowl
Super Bowl
The Super Bowl is the championship game of the National Football League , the highest level of professional American football in the United States, culminating a season that begins in the late summer of the previous calendar year. The Super Bowl uses Roman numerals to identify each game, rather...
half time show. For a period, LaBelle's theme song for The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
, titled "Get With the Program", proved to be popular along with its catchphrase. In 2003, she starred in her own lifestyle show, Livin' It Up With Patti LaBelle, which aired for three years on the TV-One channel. In 1996, LaBelle issued her autobiography, Don't Block the Blessings. She released her first of five cookbooks in 1997, and in 2006, released the book, Patti's Pearls. In addition, LaBelle began to sell collections of spices, lipstick and even wigs on her website. Her "Patti Labelle"wig collection,-featured in Especially Yours wig catalogs-.
On September 14, 2010, LaBelle made a return two decades after her last Broadway performance to star in the award-winning musical Fela!
Fela!
Fela! is a musical with a book by Bill T. Jones and Jim Lewis, based on music and lyrics by the late Nigerian singer Fela Kuti, with additional music by Aaron Johnson and Jordan Mclean and additional lyrics by Jim Lewis. It is based on events in the life of groundbreaking Nigerian composer and...
about Afrobeat
Afrobeat
Afrobeat is a combination of traditional Yoruba music, jazz, highlife, funk and chanted vocals, fused with percussion and vocal styles, popularised in Africa in the 1970s. Its main creator was the Nigerian multi-instrumentalist and bandleader Fela Kuti, who gave it its name, who used it to...
legend Fela Anikulapo-Kuti. LaBelle replaced Tony Award
Tony Award
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway...
-nominee Lillias White
Lillias White
Lillias White is an American singer and actress.The Brooklyn, New York native made her Broadway debut in Barnum in 1981. She understudied the role of Effie in the original 1981 production of Dreamgirls and played the part in the 1987 revival...
as Fela's mother, Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, and remained with the production through the end of its run on January 2, 2011.
On May 23, 2011, LaBelle appeared on "Oprah's Farewell Spectacular, Part 1” the first show in a series of three shows constituting the finale of The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
, singing "Over the Rainbow
Over the Rainbow
"Over the Rainbow" is a classic Academy Award-winning ballad song with music by Harold Arlen and lyrics by E.Y. Harburg. It was written for the movie The Wizard of Oz, and was sung by Judy Garland in the movie...
" with Josh Groban
Josh Groban
Joshua Winslow "Josh" Groban is an American singer-songwriter, musician, actor, and record producer. His four solo albums have been certified at least multi-platinum, and in 2007, he was charted as the number-one best selling artist in the United States with over 21 million records in that country...
.
LaBelle was honored with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the BET Awards
BET Awards
The BET Awards were established in 2001 by the Black Entertainment Television network to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. The awards are presented annually and broadcast live on BET...
on June 26, 2011.
She performed for Obama at the 9/11 tribute, singing "Two Steps Away." She received a standing ovation, after she walked away from the microphone and continued to be heard.
Personal life
A longtime resident of Philadelphia, LaBelle currently lives in the Philadelphia suburb, Wynnewood, PennsylvaniaWynnewood, Pennsylvania
Wynnewood, Pennsylvania is a suburban community located outside of Philadelphia in Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania and Haverford Township, Pennsylvania, United States. Wynnewood was named in 1691 for Dr. Thomas Wynne, William Penn's physician and the first Speaker of the Pennsylvania General...
. In 1969, she married Armstead Edwards. In July 1973, their first and only child, Zuri Kye Edwards, was born. In the late 1970s, Labelle and Edwards adopted two teenage boys, Stanley and Todd, the children of their next-door neighbor, after their mother died of cancer. Following the death of her youngest sister Jackie Padgett, Labelle raised Padgett's teenage children. Following the disbanding of the group Labelle in 1976, Edwards, who was a schoolteacher, took over as his wife's manager. In 2000, the couple announced their separation. Their divorce was finalized in 2001. LaBelle's son Zuri has since taken over as her manager.
Her youngest sister Jackie Padgett became president of her sister's fan club in the early 1980s. When Jackie later died of lung cancer in 1989, LaBelle dedicated her 1991 album, Burnin'
Burnin' (Patti LaBelle album)
Burnin' is a 1991 album by Patti LaBelle. It won the category of "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" at the Grammy Awards of 1992 jointly with a single by Lisa Fischer, an unusual event in the history of the Grammy Awards....
, to Padgett and filmed the video for "If You Asked Me To" a day after her funeral. Her two other sisters, Vivian and Barbara preceded Jackie in death, dying of cancer themselves. LaBelle was diagnosed with diabetes in 1992. Prior to her marriage to Edwards, LaBelle was once engaged to Temptations
The Temptations
The Temptations is an American vocal group having achieved fame as one of the most successful acts to record for Motown Records. The group's repertoire has included, at various times during its five-decade career, R&B, doo-wop, funk, disco, soul, and adult contemporary music.Formed in Detroit,...
singer Otis Williams
Otis Williams
Otis Williams is an American baritone singer. Nicknamed "Big Daddy", he has also acted as a sporadic songwriter and record producer. Williams co-founded the Motown vocal group The Temptations in early 1960 as The Elgins, a group in which he continues to perform...
breaking it off due to conflicting schedules.
In June 2011 a West Point cadet filed civil suit against LaBelle after he was allegedly assaulted by her bodyguards at Bush Intercontinental Airport, Houston in March. Houston police department
Houston Police Department
The Houston Police Department is the primary law enforcement agency serving the City of Houston, Texas, United States and some surrounding areas. Its headquarters are in 1200 Travis in Downtown Houston....
is reviewing the conduct of officers responding to the incident after they posed for photographs with the singer, but also filed assault charges against members of her entourage and warrants were issued. In September 2011, the cadet, who had initially been suspended from West Point for his involvement in the altercation, was allowed back in West Point.
However a Houston Police Department report on the incident, tells a different story. According to HPD, they went to the scene after reports of an assault.Officers were told that the limo driver went into Terminal C to pick up some luggage, and when he came out, he noticed a man standing by the limo, apparently harassing the occupants.The limo driver said the man may have been intoxicated.
"I had some drinks on the plane, but I mean, I wasn’t anywhere near intoxicated or anything along those lines," King told KHOU 11 News.
At some point, the limo driver told police King swung at him, punching him in the face.When the limo driver pushed back, he said the man fell and hit his head on the curb.According to the police report, when officers tried to question King, he said he didn’t know what happened and didn’t remember anything.
King’s lawsuit also includes the airport itself and a taxi dispatcher for allegedly failing to provide a safe, secure environment for patrons.King is seeking both actual and punitive damages, as well as attorney fees and court costs, but a dollar amount was not specified in the lawsuit.
In November 2011, LaBelle was sued by a woman named Roseanna Monk, from New York, after LaBelle allegedly hurled insults at her for allowing her then 18-month-old daughter to walk steps away from her at an apartment lobby where LaBelle was renting during her appearance on Fela! in November 2010. According to the lawsuit, after Monk reportedly told LaBelle it was none of her business as to why the child was "scampering", she allegedly threw water at Monk and her child. Even though Monk filed a police report, MS Labelle was never arrested over the alleged incident. Monk and her husband have stated that Ms Labelle needs to be taught a lesson.
See also
- List of number-one dance hits (United States)
- List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart
Grammy history
| Patti LaBelle Grammy Award Grammy Award A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry... History |
||||
| Year | Category | Title | Genre | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance | "New Day" | R&B | Nominee |
| 2003 | Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance | "Way Up There" | R&B | Nominee |
| 2003 | Grammy Hall of Fame | "Lady Marmalade Lady Marmalade "Lady Marmalade" was also covered by Italian pop star Sabrina. It was released in 1987 as the album's second single by Baby Records. In some countries, including France and the Netherlands, the song was known as "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi? " and was released in 1988.-Track listings:7" maxi#... " |
R&B | Inducted |
| 1998 | Traditional R&B Vocal Performance | Live! One Night Only | R&B | Winner |
| 1997 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "When You Talk About Love When You Talk About Love "When You Talk About Love" is a song recorded by Patti LaBelle. It was released from her 1997 album, Flame.-Song information:The song was written by Ann Nesby and musically composed and produced by the team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and James "Big Jim" Wright... " |
R&B | Nominee |
| Best R&B Album | Flame | R&B | Nominee | |
| 1993 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "All Right Now (live)" | R&B | Nominee |
| 1991 | Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group | "Superwoman" (with Gladys Knight Gladys Knight Gladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author... & Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick Dionne Warwick is an American singer, actress and TV show host, who became a United Nations Global Ambassador for the Food and Agriculture Organization, and a United States Ambassador of Health.... ) |
R&B | Nominee |
| Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | Burnin' Burnin' (Patti LaBelle album) Burnin' is a 1991 album by Patti LaBelle. It won the category of "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" at the Grammy Awards of 1992 jointly with a single by Lisa Fischer, an unusual event in the history of the Grammy Awards.... |
R&B | Winner | |
| 1990 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "I Can't Complain" | R&B | Nominee |
| 1986 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | Winner in You Winner in You Winner in You is the eight studio album by American R&B singer Patti LaBelle, released April 28, 1986, on MCA Records. Recording sessions took place during 1984–1985... |
R&B | Nominee |
| Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group | "On My Own" (with Michael McDonald Michael McDonald (singer) Michael McDonald is a five-time Grammy Award winning American singer and songwriter. McDonald is known for a soulful baritone singing style and a multi-octave range. He began his career singing back-up vocals with Steely Dan... ) |
Pop | Nominee | |
| 1985 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "New Attitude New Attitude (song) "New Attitude" is a song performed by Patti LaBelle and written by Sharon Teresa Robinson, Jon Gilutin, and Bunny Hull. It was released in January 1985 and helped launch LaBelle's solo career as a pop music singer after the singer had spent seven years without a hit following the break-up of... " |
R&B | Nominee |
| 1983 | Best Female R&B Vocal Performance | "The Best Is Yet to Come" | R&B | Nominee |
Other Awards
| Year | Category | Title | Result | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Lifetime Achievement Award | BET Awards | Winner | |
| 2009 | Legends Hall of Fame | Apollo Theater | Winner | |
| 2009 | UNCF Award of Excellence | UNCF Evening of Stars | Winner | |
| 2008 | Legend Award | World Music Awards World Music Awards The World Music Awards is an international awards show founded in 1989 that annually honors recording artists based on worldwide sales figures provided by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry . John Martinotti is an executive producer and co-founder of the show... |
Winner | |
| 2006 | Outstanding Actress - Television, Movie, Miniseries or Dramatic Special | NAACP Image Awards | Winner | Why I Wore Lipstick to My Mastectomy |
| 2006 | Outstanding Gospel Artist | NAACP Image Awards | Nominee | |
| 2004 | Outstanding Female Artist | NAACP Image Awards | Nominee | |
| 2003 | Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award | Songwriter's Hall of Fame | Winner | |
| 2001 | Walk of Fame Award | BET Walk of Fame | Winner | |
| 2001 | Lena Horne Lifetime Achievement Award | Lady of Soul Awards | Winner | |
| 1998 | Triumphant Spirit Award - Career Achievement | The Essence Awards | Winner | |
| 1998 | Outstanding Performance - Variety Series/Special | NAACP Image Awards | Winner | Live! One Night Only |
| 1996 | Outstanding Performance - Variety Series/Special | NAACP Image Awards | Winner | The Essence Awards |
| 1995 | Heritage Award - Career Achievement | Soul Train Soul Train Soul Train is an American musical variety show that aired in syndication from October 1971 to March 2006. In its 35-year history, the show primarily featured performances by R&B, soul, and hip hop artists, although funk, jazz, disco, and gospel artists have also appeared.As a nod to Soul Trains... Music Awards |
Winner | |
| 1992 | Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist | American Music Awards American Music Awards -Conception:The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC... |
Winner | |
| 1986 | Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist | American Music Awards | Nominee | |
| 1986 | Outstanding Individual Performance, Variety or Music Program | Emmy Awards | Nominee | Sylvia Fine Kaye's Musical Comedy Tonight III |
Tours
- 1985: Look To The Rainbow Tour
- 1986-1987: Winner In You Tour
- 1989-1990: Be Yourself Tour
- 1991: Burnin' Tour
- 1993: Still Patti Tour
- 1995: Gems Tour
- 1997-1998: Flame Tour
- 2000: When a Woman Loves Tour
- 2005: Timeless Journey Tour
- 2006: Classic Moments Tour
- 2008: Divas with Heart Tour (w/Chaka KhanChaka KhanChaka Khan , frequently known as the Queen of Funk, is a 10-time Grammy Award winning American singer-songwriter who gained fame in the 1970s as the frontwoman and focal point of the funk band Rufus. While still a member of the group in 1978, Khan embarked on a successful solo career...
, Gladys KnightGladys KnightGladys Maria Knight , known as the "Empress of Soul", is an American singer-songwriter, actress, businesswoman, humanitarian, and author...
and Diana RossDiana RossDiana Ernestine Earle Ross is an American singer, record producer, and actress. Ross was lead singer of the Motown group The Supremes during the 1960s. After leaving the group in 1970, Ross began a solo career that included successful ventures into film and Broadway...
) - 2008/2009: Back to Now Tour (w/LabelleLabelleLabelle is an American all female singing group who were a popular vocal group of the 1960s and 1970s. The group was formed after the disbanding of two rival girl groups in the Philadelphia/Trenton areas, the Ordettes and the Del-Capris, forming as a new version of the former group, later changing...
)
Filmography
Film- 1979: Richard Pryor: Live in ConcertRichard Pryor: Live in ConcertRichard Pryor: Live in Concert was the second of Richard Pryor's filmed concert performances, but the first to be released theatrically...
(documentary) (scenes deleted) - 1984: A Soldier's StoryA Soldier's StoryA Soldier's Story is a 1984 drama film directed by Norman Jewison, based upon Charles Fuller's Pulitzer Prize-winning Off Broadway production A Soldier's Play. A black officer is sent to investigate the murder of a black sergeant in Louisiana near the end of World War II...
- 1986: Unnatural CausesUnnatural CausesYou may be looking for UNNATURAL CAUSES: Is Inequality Making Us Sick?, a documentary series broadcast on PBS in 2008.Unnatural Causes is a detective novel by English crime writer P. D. James.-Synopsis:...
- 1989: SingSing (1989 film)Sing is a 1989 film, starring Lorraine Bracco, Peter Dobson and Jessica Steen. The movie is about a fictional New York City SING! production...
- 1990: A Different World
- 2002: Sylvester: Mighty Real (short subject)
- 2005: Preaching to the Choir
- 2006: IdlewildIdlewild (film)Idlewild is an American musical film, released August 25, 2006, written and directed by Bryan Barber. The film stars André 3000 and Big Boi of the hip hop duo OutKast, and Idlewild features musical numbers written, produced, and chiefly performed by OutKast...
- 2007: Cover
- 2008: Semi-ProSemi-ProSemi-Pro is a 2008 American sports screwball comedy film from New Line Cinema. The film was directed by Kent Alterman and stars Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, André Benjamin and Maura Tierney. The film was shot in Los Angeles near Dodger Stadium , in Detroit and in Flint, Michigan...
- 2011: Mama, I Want to Sing!
Television
- 1990: A Different World
- 1992: Out All Night
- 1994: The NannyThe Nanny (TV series)The Nanny is an American television sitcom co-produced by Sternin & Fraser Ink, Inc., and Fran Drescher in association with TriStar Television for the CBS network...
- 1997: Cosby
- 2003: Living It Up With Patti LaBelle
- 2007: The Dog Whisperer
- 2008: An Evening With The Stars: A Tribute to Patti Labelle
- 2011: Oprah`s Farewell Season
- 2011: UNCF: An Evening of Stars "When You've Been Blessed"
Music video
- Going Home to Gospel with Patti Labelle (1991) with Albertina WalkerAlbertina Walker-Early years:Walker was born in Chicago, Illinois, to Ruben and Camille Coleman Walker. Her mother was born in Houston County, Georgia, and her father in Bibb County, Georgia. They moved to Chicago between 1917-1920 where they lived out their lives. Albertina had four siblings born in Bibb County...
, Barrett Sisters, Ricky Dillard and many more.