American singer-songwriter and actress, sometimes referred to as the “Queen of R&B” and nicknamed “Miss Rhythm,” she was a runaway success of rhythm and blues over one hundred records.
Singing in the church choir from the age of six, her voice dominated and led her into clubs and bars. After Brown was discovered and signed to a record company, her career took off.
Brown’s runaway hits in the ’50s included “Teardrops From my Eyes” and “Mama, He Treats Your Daughter Mean.” She appeared in the film Hairspray (1988) and hosted a radio series.
By 1961, her style was no longer popular and she faded into obscurity in Long Island with her third husband. After they separated, she went through a time period when she drove a bus and cleaned houses to support herself. In 1977, she began a comeback through a few minor singing gigs. In 1985, the production of Black and Blue for nine months in Paris started her on the road to professionalism again. Brown won a Grammy for the album, the show was wildly popular and her come-back included a Tony Award in 1989. She found that success was sweeter the second time around.
Brown died in a Las Vegas–area hospital on 17 November 2006 at age 78 from complications following a heart attack and stroke she suffered after surgery in the previous month. She was a recipient of the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.
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