Helen Reddy | |
|---|---|
 Reddy in 1975 | |
| Born | Helen Maxine Reddy 25 October 1941 |
| Died | 29 September 2020 (aged 78) Los Angeles, California, US |
| Citizenship | Australian, American[1] |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, actress, activist, television host |
| Years active | 1965–2002 2011–2017 |
| Known for | "I Am Woman" |
| Political party | Democratic[1] |
| Spouses | Claude Weate
(m. 1961; div. 1966)Jeff Wald
(m. 1968; div. 1983)Milton Ruth
(m. 1984; div. 1995) |
| Children | 2 |
| Relatives | Toni Lamond (half-sister) Tony Sheldon (nephew) Patsy Reddy (cousin) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Pop, easy listening |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Labels | |
Helen Maxine Reddy (25 October 1941 – 29 September 2020) was an Australian-American singer, actress, television host, and activist. Born in Melbourne to a show business family, Reddy started her career as an entertainer at age four. She sang on radio and television and won a talent contest on the television program Bandstand[a] in 1966; her prize was a ticket to New York City and a record audition, which was unsuccessful. After a short and unsuccessful singing career in New York, she eventually moved to Chicago, and subsequently, Los Angeles, where she made her debut singles "One Way Ticket" and "I Believe in Music" in 1968 and 1970, respectively. The B-side of the latter single, "I Don't Know How to Love Him", reached number eight on the pop chart of the Canadian magazine RPM. She was signed to Capitol Records a year later.[2]
During the 1970s, Reddy enjoyed international success, especially in the United States, where she placed 15 singles on the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100. Six made the top 10 and three reached number one, including her signature hit "I Am Woman".[3][4] She placed 25 songs on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart; 15 made the top 10 and eight reached number one, six consecutively. In 1974, at the inaugural American Music Awards, she won the award for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist. On television, she was the first Australian to host a one-hour weekly primetime variety show on an American network, along with specials that were seen in more than 40 countries.[5]
Between the 1980s and 1990s, as her single "I Can't Say Goodbye to You" (1981) became her last to chart in the US, Reddy acted in musicals and recorded albums such as Center Stage before retiring from live performance in 2002. She returned to university in Australia, earned a degree, and practised as a clinical hypnotherapist and motivational speaker. In 2011, after singing "Breezin' Along with the Breeze" with her half-sister, Toni Lamond, for Lamond's birthday, Reddy decided to return to live performing.[5]
Reddy's song "I Am Woman" played a significant role in popular culture, becoming an anthem for second-wave feminism. She came to be known as a "feminist poster girl" or a "feminist icon".[6] In 2011, Billboard named her the number-28 adult contemporary artist of all time (the number-9 woman). In 2013, the Chicago Tribune dubbed her the "Queen of '70s Pop".[7]
- ^ a b "Helen Reddy, 'I Am Woman' Singer, Dies at 78". Variety. 30 September 2020. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
- ^ "RPM Top 100 Singles" (PDF). 4 July 1971.
- ^ "'I am Woman' on australianscreen online". Aso.gov.au. Retrieved 3 March 2011.
- ^ ".: See It Live". Archived from the original on 10 December 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ a b "The Official Helen Reddy Website". 17 July 2007. Archived from the original on 17 July 2007.
- ^ Arrow, Michelle (July 2007). "It Has Become My Personal Anthem: "I Am Woman", Popular Culture and 1970s Feminism". Australian Feminist Studies. 22 (53): 213–230. doi:10.1080/08164640701361774. S2CID 143230741.
- ^ Caro, Mark (13 March 2013). "Helen Reddy ready to roar again". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 20 March 2015.
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