Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944) is an American singer. Knight recorded hits through the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s with her family group Gladys Knight & the Pips, which included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and cousins William Guest and Edward Patten. She has won seven Grammy Awards (four as a solo artist and three with the Pips),[1] and is often referred to as the "Empress of Soul".[2][3]
Gladys Knight was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 28, 1944, to Sarah Elizabeth (née Woods), a nurse's aide, and Merald Woodlow Knight Sr., a postal worker.[7] Her parents were members of both the church choir and a local choir group.[8] She has a sister, Brenda, and two brothers, Merald "Bubba" Jr. and David "Billy".[9][10][11]
Knight was raised Baptist and began singing gospel music at age four at the Mount Moriah Baptist Church in Atlanta.[12] At the age of eight, she won Ted Mack's The Original Amateur Hour TV show contest singing Nat King Cole's "Too Young."[13] Shortly after, Knight along with her brother Bubba, sister Brenda, and cousins Eleanor and William Guest performed together during Bubba's tenth birthday party after a record player malfunctioned. The quintet later formed a group at the encouragement of Knight's mother.[10] The group settled on the name The Pips, inspired by the nickname of their cousin and manager, James "Pip" Woods.[14]
The Pips performed at church, talent shows, and clubs opening for popular acts, then signed with Brunswick Records in 1957 and began releasing singles.[15] After a few lineup changes, the group debuted their first album in 1960 when Knight was just 16.[12] By then, she had recorded five songs and released her first hit single, “Every Beat of My Heart.” The group's success was later halted by Knight's departure to start a family with husband and musician Jimmy Newman, resuming soon after when she returned.
Knight attended the historic Booker T. Washington High School, in Atlanta, later transferring and graduating from Archer High School.
The act was particularly successful in Europe, and especially the United Kingdom. A number of the Buddah singles became hits in the UK several years after their release in the US. For example, "Midnight Train to Georgia" hit the Top 5 of the UK singles chart in the summer of 1976, a full three years after its success in the U.S.
Knight and the Pips continued to have hits until the late 1970s, when they were forced to record separately due to legal issues, resulting in Knight's first solo LP recordings—Miss Gladys Knight (1978) on Buddah and Gladys Knight (1979) on Columbia Records. After divorcing James Newman II in 1973, Knight married Barry Hankerson, then Detroit mayor Coleman Young's executive aide. Knight and Hankerson remained married for four years, during which time they had a son, Shanga Ali. Hankerson and Knight became embroiled in a heated custody battle over Shanga Ali. In 1980, Johnny Mathis invited Knight to record two duets— "When A Child Is Born" (previously a hit for Mathis) and "The Lord's Prayer".
Knight and the Pips perform aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ranger in November 1981
Signing with Columbia Records in 1980 and restored to its familiar quartet form, Gladys Knight & the Pips began releasing new material. The act enlisted former Motown producers Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson for their first two albums: About Love (1980), which included the hit "Landlord" and Touch (1981).
In 1983, Gladys Knight and the Pips scored again with the hit "Save the Overtime (For Me)". The song, under the artistic direction of Leon Sylvers III (known for collaborating on Shalamar hits), was done in a soulful boogie style. The single was released from their LP "Visions" and reached number sixty-six on the Hot 100, but was more successful on the R&B where it hit number one for a single week in mid 1983. The single was the first time the group hit number one on the R&B chart since 1974. The video accompanying the song became among the earliest R&B videos to incorporate elements of hip hop culture. The album also included the R&B hit "You're Number One (In My Book)".
In 1987, Knight decided to pursue a solo career, and she and the Pips recorded their final LP together, All Our Love (1987), for MCA Records. Its infectious lead single, "Love Overboard", was a number-one R&B hit and won another Grammy for the act as well. After a successful 1988 tour, the Pips retired and Knight began her solo career. Gladys Knight & the Pips were inducted into the Georgia Music Hall of Fame[18] in 1989, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame[19] in 1996 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.
Knight shared a stage with Dionne Warwick and Patti LaBelle for the 1986 HBO special Sisters in the Name of Love, which she co-executive produced and received three ACE Awards for Performance in a Music Special, as well as nominations for Best Music Special and Costume Design in 1987. On March 27, 1988, Knight performed a rendition of "America the Beautiful" at Wrestlemania 4 in Atlantic City, NJ. In 1989, she recorded "Licence to Kill", the title track for James Bond film of the same name, a Top-10 hit in the UK and Germany.
Knight released her third and most successful solo LP, Good Woman, on MCA in 1991, which hit No. 1 on the R&B album chart, featured the No. 2 R&B hit "Men", and reached No. 45 on the main Billboard album chart—her all-time-highest showing. The album also featured "Superwoman", written by Babyface and featuring Dionne Warwick and Patti LaBelle; the track was nominated for a Grammy. Knight and LaBelle collaborated the same year on "I Don't Do Duets", for LaBelle's album Burnin'. Also in 1991, Knight performed the national anthem at Game 1 of the World Series.
Her fourth solo album, Just for You, went Gold and was nominated for the 1995 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album. The fifth solo album, At Last, earned her first solo Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Album in 2000.[20]
Knight created and directs the Mormon-themed choir Saints Unified Voices.[21] SUV has released a Grammy Award-winning CD titled One Voice, and occasionally performs at LDS church firesides.
In 2005, a duet between Knight and Ray Charles of "You Were There" was released on Charles' duets album Genius & Friends.
In the spring of 2008, Knight appeared alongside Chaka Khan, Patti LaBelle and Diana Ross at the 'Divas with Heart' concert in aid of cardiac research, at New York's Radio City Hall. Also in 2008 Gladys, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr. and Ben Stiller performed on American Idol to raise money for charity.
In 2009, Knight sang "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" and "The Lord's Prayer" at the funeral service for Michael Jackson.[22]
In September 2011, a new, updated recording of Shirley Bassey's 1960s classic "I (Who Have Nothing)" was released on iTunes and Amazon.[23]
In 2013, Knight recorded the Lenny Kravitz-written and -produced song "You And I Ain't Nothin' No More" for the soundtrack from Lee Daniels' motion picture The Butler. The song was added to the movie's soundtrack of older songs with various artists so the producers could nominate it for Best Song from a Motion Picture category at the Academy Awards.[24]
Where My Heart Belongs (2014) marked her 30th top-40 R&B album, including work by Gladys Knight & the Pips.[25] In a 2014 interview, she expressed a hope that women would "Stand Up" and stop selling sex in the music/entertainment industry. She commented that the growing trend saddened her heart and that she had been taught to dress respectfully for her audiences ... "not take it off, put it on."[26] Knight is ranked number 18 on VH1 network's list of the 100 Greatest Women of Rock.
In 2022, Knight received Kennedy Center Honors, presented by U.S. President Joe Biden.[33][34] She also headlined a U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit Dinner at the White House.[35]
Farewell tours
In October 2009, Knight started her farewell tour of the United Kingdom,[36] which featured Tito Jackson as her supporting act and special appearances by Dionne Warwick.
The UK Farewell Tour featured higher production values than previous "Gladys Knight, a mic and a light" appearances by Knight in the UK. A glossy program was available and the show featured pre-produced animation on large on-stage screens. The tour was promoted by an appearance on the TV program Later... with Jools Holland where Knight performed "If I Were Your Woman" and "Help Me Make It Through the Night".
In spite of her "farewell", Knight started touring the UK again a few years later, playing gigs in Scotland and England in 2015,[37] 2016,[38] 2017,[39] 2019, 2022[40] and 2024.[41] A farewell tour of Australia and New Zealand was announced for March 2024.[42]
In April 2005, she portrayed a singer in an episode of JAG. In April 2009, she made a special guest appearance, and performed a song, on Tyler Perry's House of Payne. Knight has also made a number of cameo appearances, including on Las Vegas and 30 Rock. In 2012, she began a recurring role in the syndicated sitcom The First Family.
In 2017, she appeared as herself in the musical-drama TV series Star.[45]
In 2018, she played Ella Grover, mother of Captain Lou Grover, in the "Lele pū nā manu like" ("Birds of a Feather...") episode of Hawaii Five-0, which first aired on November 16, 2018.[46]
Knight and Ron Winans' Chicken & Waffles in Atlanta
Knight's son Shanga Hankerson owns a chain of chicken and waffles restaurants based in Atlanta, bearing her name.[48] Gladys Knight & Ron Winans' Chicken & Waffles opened three locations in the Atlanta area. One location was featured on the Travel Channel original series Man v. Food.[49] In June 2016, authorities in Georgia raided two of the restaurants and its headquarters.[50]
In 2016, WSB-TV reported that Hankerson was at the center of an investigation involving unpaid taxes, penalties and interest. Georgia Department of Revenue Special Investigations Chief Jeff Mitchell told the station that the investigation solely involved Hankerson and not Knight.[50]
Personal life
Knight in 2016
In 1960, Knight married Atlanta musician and high school sweetheart James "Jimmy" Newman.[51][52][53] The couple had a miscarriage and went on to have two children. Their son, James "Jimmy" Gaston Newman III, was born in 1962,[54] and their daughter, Kenya Maria Newman, was born in 1963. In the early 1960s, Knight's family and the Pips moved to Detroit. The family lived in Sherwood Forest, an upscale neighborhood on Detroit's West Side. Knight retired from the road to raise their children while the Pips toured on their own, later returning with Newman as the group's musical director. Newman later became addicted to drugs and left the family when Knight was 20. They remained married for over 12 years and were separated for 7 years until their divorce in 1973.[52][55] Newman died a few years later.[56]
In 1974, Knight married Barry Hankerson, founder of Blackground Records, in Detroit. The couple had a son, Shanga Ali Hankerson, born on August 1, 1976. Around 1977, they relocated to Las Vegas. Their marriage ended in 1979 with a prolonged custody battle over their son.[56][57] Knight spent over a million dollars searching for her son after he was kidnapped.[58] In 1995, Knight married motivational speaker Les Brown,[59] divorcing in 1997.[60]
Knight's son Jimmy Newman III managed her career through his Newman Management Inc. until his death from heart failure on July 10, 1999, at age 36.[66] Newman was survived by his wife, Michelene; daughters Nastasia and Gabrielle; and sons Rishawn, Stefan, and Sterling. Following his death, her daughter Kenya Jackson took over management.[54]
Knight married William McDowell in 2001.[67] They have seventeen grandchildren and ten great-grandchildren between them.[68] Knight and McDowell reside in Fairview, North Carolina, near where they own a community center, the former Reynolds High School in Canton attended by McDowell.[69][70]
In 2017, Knight helped raise $400,000 for the Children's Learning Centers of Fairfield County. The event was held at the Palace Theatre and was co-hosted by Carol Anne Riddell and Alan Kalter.[71]
Knight had a gambling addiction that lasted more than a decade. In the late 1980s, after losing $60,000 in one night at the baccarat table, she joined Gamblers Anonymous, which helped her quit the habit.[58]
^Knight, Gladys (1997). Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story. pp. 21–22.
^Knight, Gladys (1997). Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story. p. 20. My parents were members of both the prestigious Wings over Jordan and Mount Moriah churches choirs.
^Aswad, Jem (January 17, 2019). "Gladys Knight Comments on Colin Kaepernick and Super Bowl: 'I Am Here to Give the Anthem Back Its Voice'". 'I understand that Mr. Kaepernick is protesting two things, and they are police violence and injustice,' she wrote. 'It is unfortunate that our National Anthem has been dragged into this debate when the distinctive senses of the National Anthem and fighting for justice should each stand alone. I am here today and on Sunday, Feb. 3 to give the Anthem back its voice, to stand for that historic choice of words, the way it unites us when we hear it and to free it from the same prejudices and struggles I have fought long and hard for all my life, from walking back hallways, from marching with our social leaders, from using my voice for good — I have been in the forefront of this battle longer than most of those voicing their opinions to win the right to sing our country's Anthem on a stage as large as the Super Bowl LIII.'
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