The Ladies of Soul Music

A celebration of the women who have shaped the sound of soul music over the years. From Aretha Franklin to Whitney Houston, these ladies have left a lasting impression on the music industry.

The Supremes

Diana Ross, Mary Wilson, and Florence Ballard were the original members of the Supremes, which is one of the most successful Motown groups of all time. They released hit after hit during the 1960s, including “Baby Love” and “Stop! In the Name of Love.” The Supremes were not only one of the most popular groups of their time, but they were also groundbreaking for their use of multi-part harmonies and innovative production.

Diana Ross

Diana Ross was born in 1944 in Detroit, Michigan. She rose to fame as the lead singer of the Motown girl group The Supremes, one of the best-selling groups of all time. Ross went on to have a hugely successful solo career, winning multiple Grammys and an Oscar for her role in the film “Lady Sings the Blues.” In 2012, Ross was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a solo artist.

Mary Wilson

As a founding member of The Supremes, Mary Wilson was an integral part of one of the most successful vocal groups of all time. With hits like “Baby Love” and “Stop! In the Name of Love,” The Supremes dominated the pop charts in the 1960s and established themselves as one of the most successful Motown acts of all time.

Born inGreenville, Mississippi, Wilson moved to Detroit with her family as a child. It was there that she met fellow Supremes member Diana Ross, and the two quickly became friends. In 1959, they were both recruited to be part of a new group being assembled by Motown founder Berry Gordy. Along with Florence Ballard and Barbara Ann Martin, they became The Supremes.

The group went on to achieve massive success, selling tens of millions of records and becoming one of the most popular live acts of their era. They were also one of the first black groups to find crossover success with white audiences, thanks to their polished sound and glamorous image.

Wilson remained with The Supremes until 1977, when she left the group to pursue a solo career. She has since released several solo albums and remains an active concert performer. She is also a best-selling author, having penned several books about her life with The Supremes.

Florence Ballard

Florence Glenda Chapman (June 30, 1943 – February 22, 1976) was an American singer. She was a founding member of the Motown group the Supremes. After being removed from the Supremes in 1967, she attempted a solo career with limited success.

Ballard sang on sixteen top 40 singles with the Supremes, including ten #1 hits. In 1968, Ballard tried unsuccessfully to launch a solo career after leaving The Supremes. Her first solo recordings were met with little success and Motown refused to release them at first. After much pressure from Epic Records andMotown CEO Berry Gordy, her debut solo album Florence Ballard finally came out in 1971 to little fanfare; two singles were released but both failed to make the charts.[citation needed] A second album followed in 1974 on ABC Records titled Love Ain’t Love; it too was unsuccessful commercially. After her final release “God Bless America” for ABC in 1976, Ballard’s health rapidly declined due to alcoholism and depression

Martha and the Vandellas

Martha and the Vandellas were a Motown R&B/soul vocal group who scored a string of hit singles in the 1960s. The group was founded in 1957 by lead singer Martha Reeves, sisters Lois and Delphine Reeves, and friend Annette Beard.

Martha Reeves

Martha Reeves is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and music artist. She is best known as the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas. The group had a string of hits including “Dancing in the Street” and “Heat Wave”.

Reeves began her career as a secretary at Motown Records. She was soon discovered by Motown CEO Berry Gordy and was signed to the label. She rose to fame as the lead singer of Martha and the Vandellas. The group had a number of hit songs in the 1960s including “Dancing in the Street”, “Heat Wave”, and “Nowhere to Run”.

After the group disbanded in 1972, Reeves embarked on a solo career. She released several solo albums including July seven (1973), Sweet Misery (1976), and I Want My Mama (1982).

In 2013, Reeves was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Martha and the Vandellas.

Rosalind Ashford

Rosalind Ashford was born on August 4, 1943 in Willingboro, New Jersey. One of the original Vandellas, Ashford was the group’s lead singer and main choreographer. She sang lead on many of the group’s hit songs, including “Heat Wave”, “Dancing in the Street”, and “Nowhere to Run”.

In 1964, Ashford left the Vandellas to pursue a solo career. She released a few singles, but none of them were successful. In 1967, she rejoined the group and continued to perform and record with them until their final album in 1972. After the group disbanded, Ashford toured with Martha Reeves as part of a Martha Reeves and the Vandellas reunion tour.

In recent years, Ashford has continued to perform as part of a reformed version of the Vandellas. She currently lives in Detroit, Michigan.

Annette Beard

Born Annette Beard in Detroit, Michigan, on August 16, 1943, she was one of the three original members of Martha and the Vandellas (the other two being Rosalind Ashford and Betty Kelley). The group was formed in 1961 and had their first hit with “(We’ve Got) Honey Love” in 1963. Following this they had a string of hits including “My Baby Loves Me” (1964), “Nowhere to Run” (1965), and “I’m Ready for Love” (1966).

Beard left the group in 1967, before they recorded their final hit “Honey Chile” (1968). She was replaced by Yvonne Allen. After leaving the group, Beard continued to perform as a solo artist and also worked as a songwriter. In the early 1970s she wrote songs for several Motown artists including The Temptations and Gladys Knight & the Pips. She also released a solo album, Annette Beard & Company, in 1974.

In 1984, Martha and the Vandellas were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Beard continued to perform with the group until 2002 when she retired due to health issues. She died on February 19, 2013, at the age of 69.

The Marvelettes

The Marvelettes were an American girl group signed to Motown’s Tamla label in 1961. The group’s lineup consisted of Katherine Anderson, Georgeanna Tillman, Wanda Young, Gladys Horton, and Keely Smith. The Marvelettes are best known for their 1961 hit single, “Please Mr. Postman”, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.

Gladys Horton

Gladys Horton was born on May 30, 1944, in Greensboro, North Carolina. As a child, she sang in her church choir and took piano lessons. She later joined a local doo-wop group called the Porchlights. In 1961, Horton met Anita Curtis, who worked at the local Motown record label. Curtis helped the Porchlights land an audition with Motown founder Berry Gordy. The group didn’t get a recording contract, but Gordy was impressed with Horton’s vocal abilities and offered her a job as a background singer for the label.

Horton accepted Gordy’s offer and moved to Detroit, Michigan. She soon became a member of the all-female singing group the Marvelettes. The group’s first single, “Please Mr. Postman,” became Motown’s first number-one hit on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1961. The Marvelettes went on to have several more hits over the next few years, including “Playboy” (1961), “Beechwood 4-5789” (1962), and “Don’t Mess with Bill” (1966).

In 1967, Horton left the Marvelettes due to health problems. She later rejoined the group for a short time but left again in 1970. Horton continued to struggle with personal issues in the years that followed and was unable to revive her career. She died of cancer on January 26, 2011, at the age of 66.

Wanda Young

Wanda Young, lead singer of the Motown group The Marvelettes, passed away on Tuesday at the age of 72.

The Marvelettes were one of the most successful girl groups of the 1960s, with hits like “Please Mr. Postman” and “Don’t Mess with Bill.” They were also one of the first Motown groups to cross over to the pop charts.

Wanda Young was the group’s lead singer from 1961 to 1970. She sang on some of their biggest hits, including “Please Mr. Postman,” “Too Many Fish in the Sea,” and “Don’t Mess with Bill.”

After leaving The Marvelettes, Young continued to perform and record as a solo artist. She released a number of albums throughout her career, including 1975’s Wanda Young with Love.

Young passed away on Tuesday, August 7, 2018 at her home in Detroit. She was 72 years old.

Katherine Anderson

Katherine Anderson (born June 8, 1939), known as Kaye Bassett, is an American retired singer. She was a founding member of the Motown group the Marvelettes.

Anderson was born in Detroit, Michigan, to parents who were both music lovers. She began singing in her church choir at the age of six. When she was nine, she sang lead on a local radio show called “The Horn and Hardart Children’s Hour.” She attended Bournemouth Elementary School and Cass Technical High School.

After graduation, Anderson worked at a local store before auditioning for the Marvelettes. She was initially rejected by the group’s founder, Gladys Horton, but was later accepted after Horton heard her sing again.

The Marvelettes were one of Motown’s most successful groups, scoring hits with such songs as “Please Mr. Postman,” “Beechwood 4-5789,” and “Don’t Mess with Bill.” In 1963, Anderson left the group to start a family. She later returned to performing sporadically with them until their final performance in 1983.

The Velvelettes

The Velvelettes were an American Motown singing group active during the 1960s. The group’s best-known lineup consisted of Calvin Harris, Norman McLean, Oliver McLin, and Robert Graves. The Velvelettes were one of the few Motown groups that were not assembled by the label’s founder, Berry Gordy. Instead, they were assembled by William Robinson, Jr., who served as the group’s manager.

Carolyn Gill

Carolyn Gill was born on July 22, 1944, in Detroit, Michigan. The Velvelettes began their career at Motown Records in 1961. Their first single, “There He Goes,” was released in 1962 and reached number 49 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The group’s second single, “Needle in a Haystack,” was released in 1964 and reached number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The Velvelettes disbanded in 1967. Carolyn Gill died on February 4, 2019, at the age of 74.

Norma Barbee

The Velvelettes were an all-girl Motown singing group who achieved moderate success in the early 1960s. The group’s best known line-up consisted of Norma Barbee, Carolyn Crawford, Clineece Guice, and Myrna Matthews.

The Velvelettes began as a quartet of teenagers from Detroit, Michigan who all attended Northeastern High School – Norma Barbee, Elizabeth Rogers (later replaced by Carolyn Crawford), Katherine Anderson (later replaced by Cleo “Clineece” Guice), and Myrna Matthews. The group was brought to the attention of Motown producer William “Mickey” Stevenson by Robert Bateman, a local record store owner, who introduced them to Stevenson after one of their performances at high school.

Calvin Harris

Calvin Harris is a Scottish record producer, DJ, singer, and songwriter. His debut studio album I Created Disco was released in June 2007 and it contained the top-ten singles “Acceptable in the 80s” and “The Girls”. His second studio album, Ready for the Weekend (2009), reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and includes the singles “I’m Not Alone”, ” Ready for the Weekend”, and “Flashback”. His third studio album, 18 Months (2012), topped the charts in the UK and features the singles “Bounce”, “Feel So Close”, and “Sweet Nothing”. Harris released his fourth studio album, Motion, in November 2014. It debuted at number two on the UK Albums Chart and includes the singles “Under Control”, “Summer”, and “Blame”. Harris has collaborated with numerous other recording artists, including Kylie Minogue, Rihanna, Ellie Goulding, Rita Ora, John Newman, Ne-Yo, Alicia Keys, Example, Big Sean, gotye Florence Welchand Disclosure. He has received six Brit Award nominations—winning Best British Maletwice—and has won three Grammy Awards out of seven nominations.