As she grew up, she stood by her mother who had her at only 14 years of age. Etta said, "My mother always told me, even if a song has been done a thousand times, you can still bring something of your own to it. I'd like to think I did that." A year after her death, now, Etta is still considered to be one of the most dynamic singers the music industry has ever had. By this, she really has lived up to what her mother told her.
Throughout her time as an artist, she has won many awards including: 4 Grammies, 17 Blue Music Awards. And that isn't even half of what she has managed to achieve! Not long after being involved in a band with Johnny Otis, she started her solo career in 1960. This is when she released ballads. The most memorable ballad being "At Last". She then moved onto Gospel tunes throughout the 60's such as, "Something's Got a Hold On Me".
Unfortunately after this stage, her heroine addiction became too much, which not only affected her personal life, but her professional life too. However, Etta kept pushing to make albums, in which she continued to gain positive reactions from critics and fans.
She followed on with a contract with Warner Brothers Records. As a result she ended up putting on an unforgettable performance in the Olympics that was held in Los Angeles in 1984 during the opening ceremony. This helped to to create a new public profile all over again excluding the drugs.
Here on, she performed throughout the 1990's and even under took surgery, which helped her lose over 200 pounds. This entailed the result of her voice being able to reach a broader range, so she could sing lower, higher and louder.
6 years before her own death, Etta James released the album All the Way. This featured cover songs by artists including: Prince, Marvin Gaye and James Brown. Lastly, she took part in a Jazz tribute album for Ella Fitzgerald.
In 2011, Etta James reached the final stages of Leukemia, as well as having battled with Dementia and Hepatitis C. She later died on the 20th January 2012.
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CATEGORY: MUSIC
CATEGORY: MUSIC
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