Roberta Flack, a Grammy-award winning singer, passed away at the age of 88, as confirmed by her publicist.
She was most famous for hits like Killing Me Softly With His Song and The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.
Flack pictured in 1972. Pic: Photoreporters/Shutterstock
A top recording artist in the 1970s, Flack passed away on Monday surrounded by her family, according to her publicist, Elaine Schock.
In 2022, Flack revealed she was battling motor neurone disease (MND), which prevented her from singing.
She rose to fame in her thirties, gaining success after her song The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face was featured in Clint Eastwood’s 1971 film Play Misty For Me.
The song reached the top of the US charts in 1972, earning Flack a Grammy.
She then won the Record of the Year Grammy for the second time the following year with Killing Me Softly, a feat no other artist had achieved before.
Discovered in the late 1960s by jazz musician Les McCann, Flack was a classically trained pianist who received a scholarship to study at Howard University at the age of 15.
McCann once wrote about Flack: “Her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known.”
Flack with her Grammy for Killing Me Softly in 1974. Pic: AP
Flack was a significant figure in the social and civil rights movement during that era, counting Reverend Jesse Jackson and Angela Davis among her friends. She even visited Davis in prison when she faced charges – which she was later acquitted of – for murder and kidnapping.
She also performed at the funeral of Jackie Robinson, the first black player in Major League Baseball.
Living in the same apartment building as John Lennon and Yoko Ono, Flack developed a friendship with the Beatle and eventually released an album of Beatles covers.
Flack in 1976. Pic: Robert Legon/Shutterstock
Originally named Roberta Cleopatra Flack, she was born to musician parents in Black Mountain, North Carolina, in 1937, and was raised in Arlington, Virginia.
She was married to jazz musician Stephen Novosel from 1966 to 1972.
In addition to her 1970s hits, Flack had success with the Peabo Bryson duet Tonight, I Celebrate My Love in the 1980s and the Maxi Priest duet Set The Night To Music in the 1990s.
Her collaboration with Donny Hathaway, her former Howard University classmate, resulted in hits like Where Is the Love and The Closer I Get to You before his tragic death in 1979.
Stevie Wonder and Flack perform a duet in 1985. Pic: AP
Although she did not match her previous success, Flack continued to find recognition with collaborations like the one with the Fugees who covered Killing Me Softly in the mid-90s.
She was a five-time Grammy winner, receiving a lifetime achievement Grammy in 2020.
Modern stars like Beyoncé, John Legend, and Ariana Grande have all expressed admiration for her work.
Flack in 2010. Pic: Reuters/John Sommers
Flack also worked as a high-school teacher while pursuing her music career, showcasing her ability to connect with her students through music education.
She once shared: “I was teaching at Banneker Junior High in Washington, DC. It was a part of the city where kids weren’t that privileged, but they had music education. I wanted them to read music. First, I’d get their attention by singing, ‘Stop, in the name of love.’ Then I could teach them!”