Another true music legend has gone. Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer who dominated the 1970s and remains a titan of R&B, passed away on Monday, per AP. She was 88 years old.
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Flack reportedly passed away surrounded by family on Monday. As we reported back in 2o22, Flack revealed at the time that she had ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and was no longer able to sing. Her musical contributions were nothing short of historic, as she topped the Billboard charts numerous times in the 1970s with timeless hits like “Killing Me Softly With His Song” and “Feel Like Makin’ Love.”
A classically trained pianist, Roberta Cleopatra Flack was born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, and raised in Arlington, Virginia. With both of her parents as musicians, she grew up a huge gospel fan, and was a bit of a child prodigy herself, receiving a full scholarship to Howard at just 15 from her piano-playing abilities.
While Flack spent most of her 20s with a more private life, she was thrust into stardom essentially overnight after her cover of “The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face” was used in Clint Eastwood’s film, “Play Misty for Me.” The exposure helped the song grow to be one of her first big hits, eventually topping the Billboard Pop charts and earning her a Grammy for Record of the Year.
In 1973, her hit song “Killing Me Softly With His Song” also earned a Grammy for Record of the Year, making her the first artist to win consecutively in that category. The song also took home Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, and went on of course to inspire countless artists, including The Fugees who put their own spin on the song back in 1996.
Flack got her flowers back in 2020, when she earned the Lifetime Achievement award at the Grammys. Throughout her life, she was incredibly vulnerable and open about her love and passion for music and the ways it connects us as people, telling songwriteruniverse.com in 2020 that, “through music we understand what we are thinking and feeling.” She added, “No matter what challenge life presents, I am at home with my piano, on a stage, with my band, in the studio, listening to music. I can find my way when I hear music.”
Flack was also incredibly outspoken regarding social change and social justice throughout her career, maintaining close bonds with known figures Rev. Jesse Jackson and Angela Davis. “Social activism in music is critical,” she told Forbes in 2021. “We must always try to advocate for change to make this world better, kinder, and more peaceful.”
Flack publicly supported animal welfare and music education through her Roberta Flack Foundation, which was first launched in 2010. A documentary about her life and career, “Roberta,” premiered a few years ago, as we reported at the time. It aired as a part of PBS’ American Masters series in 2023, and is available to rent on Prime Video.
Tributes have been pouring in on social media. Bernice A. King, daughter of Martin Luther King Jr., wrote in her tribute on Instagram, “What a powerful, synchronized, beautiful instrument you were…Thank you.”
Jennifer Hudson also wrote about the legendary singer’s passing, writing, “So sad to hear of Roberta Flack’s passing. One of the great soul singers of all time. Rest well, Ms. Flack. Your legacy lives on!!!”
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