Patricia Louise Holt (born May 24, 1944),[1] known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Godmother of Soul".[2]
She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singer and frontwoman of the vocal group Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles. Following the group's name change to Labelle in the 1970s, they released the popular number-one hit "Lady Marmalade". As a result, after the group split in 1976, LaBelle began a successful solo career, starting with her critically acclaimed debut album, which included the career-defining song, "You Are My Friend". LaBelle became a mainstream solo star in 1984 following the success of the singles "If Only You Knew", "Love, Need and Want You" (later sampled for 2002's "Dilemma"), "New Attitude" and "Stir It Up". Less than two years later, in 1986, LaBelle scored a number-one album Winner in You[3] and its number-one duet single, "On My Own", with Michael McDonald In 1991, she recorded a hit duet version of the Babyface composition, "Superwoman" with Gladys Knight and Dionne Warwick. That same year LaBelle released the solo album, Burnin', which featured collaborations with Knight, Prince, Michael Bolton, Big Daddy Kane, and Luther Vandross, as well as a reunion with Labelle bandmates Hendryx and Dash on the track "Release Yourself."[16] Burnin' went gold, with three successive top five singles on the R&B charts. This success led to LaBelle winning her first Grammy Award in the Best Female R&B Vocal Performance category in the 34th Annual Grammy Award Ceremony of 1992, sharing the win with singer Lisa Fischer, who won for her hit ballad, "How Can I Ease the Pain", in a rare tie in the history of the Grammys.[17] She was also nominated in the Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal category alongside Knight and Warwick for "Superwoman."[18]
LaBelle's 1994 album, Gems, also went gold and featured the hit, "The Right Kinda Lover". On January 29, 1995, LaBelle performed at the Super Bowl XXIX halftime show, held at the Joe Robbie Stadium (which later became Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami, Florida with Tony Bennett, Arturo Sandoval and Miami Sound Machine. LaBelle released the album, Flame, which included the dance hit, "When You Talk About Love". LaBelle released her bestselling memoirs, Don't Block the Blessings, in 1996, and released the first of five bestselling cookbooks in 1997. In 1998, she released the live album, Live! One Night Only, later resulting in a second Grammy win the following February. It remains her most recent Grammy win. She was honored with the Triumphant Spirit Award for Career Achievement at the 1998 Essence Awards, featuring tributes from Michael Bolton, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, SWV, and Luther Vandross.
