Legendary R&B Singer Betty Wright Dead At 66

Longtime R&B singer Betty Wright has passed away after a long, successful career in the music industry.

Her cause of death was not announced when her niece confirmed her passing on Sunday morning; more information about her passing is not yet available. She was 66 years old.

Related: Rock And Roll Legend Little Richard Dead At 87 Years Old

The music world had known something was up for about a week now, because earlier this month Chaka Khan tweeted a message asking for prayers and support for the talented soul singer, as you can see (below):

Calling all my #PrayWarriors | My beloved sister, Betty Wright @MsBettyWright, is now in need of all your prays.
“Que Sera, Sera | Whatever Will Be, Will Be”
In Jesus Name We Pray for Sister Betty
All My Love Chaka pic.twitter.com/krQcfWFl5r

— C H A K A | K H A N (@ChakaKhan) May 2, 2020

Again, it’s unclear what the support and prayers were about, but it was serious enough to elicit raw emotion at the time. And now, Wright has passed on, leaving behind several children and a very successful — and very underrated — career in the music industry. So, so sad.

Wright was well-known for her 1971 hit Clean Up Woman, which she recorded and released when she was just 18 years old. It wound up being her biggest and most popular song ever, but she also had several other breakthrough hits that landed her national notoriety, too, including Let Me Be Your Lovermaker, Shoorah Shoorah, Tonight is the Night, and Where is the Love.

In the 1980s, Wright launched her own independent label — something that had never been done before by a woman! — and released No Pain (No Gain), popularizing the phrase for the very first time in American pop culture. She also had a hit with Mother Wit, and became the first African-American female singer to ever go gold on her own label with that single. Wow!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ryM4ZK1OyYo

Wright had five children during her lifetime, though one — son Patrick — was shot and killed at 21 years old back in 2005. Her legacy lives on in her music, and in her influences; she was an inspiration to countless modern-day singers, including Mary J. Blige, Joss Stone (who performed with Wright several years ago), and The Roots, among others. Such an icon, now passed on from this world. Sad, sad stuff.

Twitter trended with Wright’s name for much of Sunday morning as fans remembered her career and mourned her passing. Deservedly so, too, considering she’s long been considered one of the most underrated influential singers of her time.

As they tend to do, Twitter users became confused, too, and pondered whether Golden Girls alum and longtime TV star Betty White was the one who passed away. Not so, as all accounts suggest White is fine.

Still, our condolences to Wright’s family, friends, and loved ones on her death.

Rest in Peace to a legend in the music world…

[Image via WENN]