You can’t talk about Motown without talking about The Supremes, one of the label’s most successful groups, who topped the charts in the 1960s with hits like “Baby Love” and “Where Did Our Love Go.”
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But behind their glamorous gowns and pitch-perfect harmony was something much darker – a rift in the group fueled by jealousy. As Diana Ross emerged as the lead singer and the group’s biggest star, her bandmate Florence Ballard felt her light was being dimmed. Her depression drove her to lash out and ultimately leave her music career and her childhood friends behind.
Often called “The Lost Supreme,” Florence Ballard’s life was tragically cut short at age 32. This is her story.
Detroit Born
Florence Ballard was born in Detroit, Michigan, on June 30, 1943. The ninth of 15 children, Ballard grew up in the city’s Brewster-Douglass Projects. From a young age, Ballard sang in the church choir and local talent shows. It was through those performances that she met her future bandmate, Mary Wilson, who was often her competition.
The Primettes
In 1958, Ballard’s voice caught the attention of Milton Jenkins, a promoter and manager who was working with a local group called The Primes (who would later become known as The Temptations). Jenkins thought Ballard would be perfect for a sister act he was putting together called “The Primettes.”
A high school junior at the time, Ballard recruited her friend Mary Wilson, who brought in Diana Ross. Betty McGlown would join the group later as a fourth member.
A Traumatic Incident
In 1960, a traumatic incident would change a then-17-year-old Ballard for life. Florence went to a local dance with her brother. At the end of the night, the pair got separated, and Ballard took a ride from someone she thought she knew. The man threatened her with a knife and raped her in an empty parking lot. The incident changed Ballard’s personality and her relationship with her friends in the group. Mary Wilson said the incident “totally destroyed” her.
“We couldn’t understand what was happening,” she said. “And it really hurt us.”
Ballard stopped singing for a while, and it took a lot for her bandmates to get her back.
Becoming The Supremes
The Primettes got their big break in 1960 when, with the help of Ross’ neighbor Smokey Robinson, they got to audition for Berry Gordy of Motown Records. Gordy was impressed with the group, but wanted the teens to finish high school before getting into the music industry, so he waited to sign them to the label in 1961. But Gordy thought the group needed a new name, and after lots of brainstorming, they settled on Ballard’s suggestion – The Supremes.
Looking for a Lead
With their Motown deal inked, the group struggled to find a hit. In the early days, the group didn’t have an official lead singer, and the members took turns filling the role.
But it was hard not to notice that the ladies’ voices had completely different sounds. Diana Ross was known for her high-pitched singing voice, while Mary Wilson compared Ballard’s deep, soulful voice to that of Etta James or Aretha Franklin, in an episode of “Unsung.” The Supremes finally scored their first number one hit with Diana Ross singing lead on 1964’s Where Did Our Love Go,” and the group had no idea how high Ross’ star was about to rise.
Internal Problems
The Supremes’ success opened up a whole new world for these three young women from Detroit, but cracks would start to form in the group’s foundation as Diana Ross emerged as the lead singer on a string of hit songs. Florence Ballard didn’t like that she felt The Supremes were no longer a group, and Berry Gordy had a clear favorite.
“Diana wanted to be the lead singer. I felt that I was suited better doing some tunes, and I felt that the relationship, as close as I thought we were, it just should have been spread around. But it wasn’t. Diana was the complete lead, in complete control of the group,” Ballard said in an interview.
Problems With Berry Gordy
Florence Ballard had issues with Diana Ross’ placement in the spotlight and began to rebel. She started drinking, which some believe led her temper to explode. By the late 1960s, Ballard was fed up with Gordy’s constant criticism, including his comments about her weight and calling her fat.
“He would say to me, ‘Florence, you’re too fat.’ Well, I was a size 12, and I guess next to Diane, maybe I was fat. But as far as I was concerned, I was pretty damn stacked,” she said in a 1975 interview with author Peter Benjaminson of the Detroit Free Press. “I knew I was well put together because the guys’ reactions in the audience were something else.”
“I Don’t Dance to Anyone’s Tune…Unless I Want To”
As time went on, Ballard said Gordy knew exactly how to get under her skin, trying to control her by threatening her if she didn’t do things the way he wanted. But Ballard’s will was just as strong and made it almost impossible for her to remain a member of the group she help found that was now called “Diana Ross and The Supremes.”
“He always said he wanted to control me, and if he couldn’t control me then he didn’t want me around,” Ballard told Benjaminson in 1975. “I guess by being controlled I was supposed to be a puppet on a string and he was supposed to pull my string and I danced to his tune. I’m not that type of person. I don’t dance to anyone’s tune unless I want to.”
Walking Away
Eventually, the tension became too much for Ballard, and she left the group in 1967 after an appearance at The Flamingo in Las Vegas. Ballard, who had been drinking, said she was tired of being called fat and poked her stomach out on stage. Gordy was outraged by her behavior and sent her home after the show. She was replaced by Cindy Birdsong, whom Ballard told Peter Benjaminson that Berry Gordy was priming to take her place.
Getting Back on Track
After leaving The Supremes, Ballard signed a release that gave her $15,000 and kept her from using the group’s name or collecting royalties from their music. Without the advice of legal counsel, Ballard had no idea how bad that decision would prove to be for her career.
A Solo Career
Florence Ballard loved to sing and was trying to find life in the music industry after The Supremes. In 1968, she married Tommy Chapman, who tried to help her kick start her solo career. But Tommy didn’t have the experience to manage his wife. Her first two singles weren’t successful, and many people believe it was because she wasn’t able to use The Supremes name to market herself. She lost her record contract and her fortune.
Tragic Passing
When the money dried up, Florence Ballard lost her marriage and eventually her home. With nothing left, her drinking got worse. Ballard passed away on February 22, 1976 in Detroit, Michigan. She was 32 years old. The tragedy surrounding Ballard’s untimely death brought Mary Wilson and Diana Ross, who had barely spoken since The Supremes broke up together to pay their last respects to their friend and bandmate.
Lasting Legacy
Florence Ballard may be gone, but her legacy lives on. At the 2007 Golden Globes, actress-singer Jennifer Hudson dedicated her Best Supporting Actress win to Florence Ballard, who provided the inspiration for “Effie,” Hudson’s character in “Dreamgirls.”
“I just want to dedicate this award to a lady who never really got a fair chance,” Hudson said in her acceptance speech. “This award is for Florence Ballard. You will never be forgotten.”
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