Roberta Cleopatra Flack (1937–2025) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist known for her soulful ballads and genre-blending music that shaped R&B, jazz, folk, and pop. Her emotive voice made her a defining artist of the 1970s and beyond.
Born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, she grew up in a musical family, learning piano early. She won a music scholarship to Howard University at 15, becoming one of its youngest students. After graduating, she worked as a music teacher before launching her career.
Flack’s breakthrough came with First Take (1969,) featuring The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, which won the Grammy Award for Record of the Year (1973.) She followed with Killing Me Softly (1973,) earning another Grammy for Record of the Year (1974.) Other albums include Feel Like Makin’ Love (1975,) Blue Lights in the Basement (1977,) and Roberta (1994.)
She frequently collaborated with Donny Hathaway, producing hits like Where Is the Love (1972) and The Closer I Get to You (1978.) Later duets included Tonight, I Celebrate My Love (1983) with Peabo Bryson and Set the Night to Music (1991) with Maxi Priest.
More: Wikipedia • READ: Works by Roberta Flack
To live is to suffer; to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering.
—Roberta Flack
Topics: Suffering, Meaning
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