Roberta Flack, the long-lasting vocalist who rose to stardom within the Nineteen Seventies with hits like “Killing Me Softly with His Music” and “The place Is the Love,” handed away on Monday, as confirmed by her publicist. She was 88.
“We’re heartbroken that the wonderful Roberta Flack handed away this morning, February 24, 2025,” wrote Elaine Schock, her publicist, in an announcement. “She died peacefully surrounded by her household.”
Discover out extra about her and her private life beneath.
Who Was Roberta Flack?
Born on February 10, 1937, in North Carolina, Flack was the daughter of a church organist and started taking part in classical piano at a younger age. She entered Howard College in Washington, D.C., on the age of 15 on a full scholarship.
She went on to grow to be a Grammy-winning artist identified for hits like her model of “Killing Me Softly With His Music,” “The First Time Ever I Noticed Your Face,” and “Really feel Like Makin’ Love,” all of which earned her prime spots on the Billboard charts. Flack was nominated for Grammy Awards 14 instances and gained 4, in response to the Grammys.
Within the assertion issued by her publicist following her passing, it was famous, “Roberta broke boundaries and data,” including that “She was additionally a proud educator.” In response to Selection, she taught faculty in North Carolina and the District of Columbia.
How Was Roberta Flack’s Well being?
Throughout a 2018 efficiency at New York Metropolis’s Apollo Theater, Flack felt unwell and needed to go away the venue. It was later revealed that she had suffered a stroke years earlier.
In 2020, Flack was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in recognition of her contributions to R&B, significantly her affect on the Quiet Storm subgenre. She declined to offer a speech on the time and stepped away from performing in 2022 attributable to well being points, which have been later revealed to be a prognosis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in the identical yr.
ALS, also called Lou Gehrig’s illness, is a progressive neurological situation that impairs an individual’s capability to manage their muscular tissues, with the illness worsening over time.
Was Roberta Flack Married?
Flack was not married on the time of her loss of life, however she was beforehand married to fellow musician Steve Novosel from 1966 to 1972.
Did Roberta Flack Have Youngsters?
Flack didn’t have kids of her personal, however she was the aunt of well-known determine skater Rory Flack and the godmother of late musician Bernard Wright, who tragically died in 2022 after being hit by a automotive whereas crossing a avenue in Dallas.
