Gladys Knight and the Pips performing on the USS RANGER (CV-61) aircraft carrier
Seven-time Grammy award winner, songwriter, actress and singer Gladys Knight is widely known for belting out soulful hits in the 1960s and 1970s and was famously part of the group, “Gladys Knight & the Pips.”
Knight was born on May 28, 1944, in Atlanta, Georgia. She gained slight prominence by her appearance on “Ted Mack’s The Original Amateur Hour TV.” Moving forward, she formed a singing group that included her brother Merald, cousins Edward Patten and Elenor Guest and sister Brenda named The Pips.
In 1966, the group gained a record deal with Motown Records and scored several hits such as, “Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye) and the first released version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine.”
In 1973, the group joined the roster of Buddah Records and reigned even more success with several hits.
In 1987, Knight pursued a solo career. The group was inducted into the Georgia Hall of Fame in 1989 and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996.
Knight’s move to become a solo artist proved to be a lucrative one as she appeared and sang on hits of her own and with other artists such as Ray Charles, Johnny Mathis and Lenny Kravitz.
She has been bestowed with an Honorary Doctorate in Performing Arts from Shaw University, Soul Train Music Awards Lifetime Achievement Award and a BET Lifetime Achievement Award to list a few accolades.
To celebrate her birthday and legacy, Face2Face Africa shares with you 10 of her greatest hits.
Scroll through to check them out in no particular order:
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