Hall of Fame inductee, six-time Grammy Award-winning singer Donna Summer, titled "Queen of Disco", deserves attention.
Donna Summer also took the 1st position in the Billboard 200, four times in a year she took the “top” in the Billboard Hot 100. The artist has sold more than 130 million records, successfully completed 7 world tours.
The difficult childhood of the future singer Donna Summer
Ladonna Adrian Gaines, widely known as Donna Summer, was born on the last day of 1948. It happened in the American city of Boston.
The girl became the third child of seven. The family could not boast of wealth. Children were brought up in religious traditions, but more often they were left to their own devices. Ladonna was a "mischievous" child, early interested in music. Parents gave the girl to sing in the choir at the church when she was 8 years old.
Not having completed her studies at school, Ladonna decided to devote herself entirely to music. She passed the audition, got a place in the rock band Crow. The black soloist and the only girl in the team did an excellent job with her role.
The group regularly performed in clubs, did not claim significant success. Having reached the age of 18, the girl moved to New York, successfully passed the audition, and joined the team of the musical Hair.
Donna Summer moving to Europe
During the period of national protests in the United States, Ladonna decided to leave not only the metropolis and her native country, but also the continent. The girl joined the cast of the Hairs show in Vienna. Soon the singer began to perform in productions of the Vienna Volksoper. The life of the singer was not easy.
She had to work hard trying to live in expensive Europe. The girl took on various part-time jobs. She sang in clubs on backing vocals, acted as a model. Earnings were enough to rent housing and a modest life.
In 1968, under the name Gaines, Donna recorded the popular song Aquarius in German, which she performed in the musical Hairs. In the same period, cover versions of several more well-known compositions were recorded. In 1973, the girl performed minor parts when recording a compilation of the then popular Three Dog Night band.
It was during this period that the promising performer was noticed by the production duo Giorgio Moroder and Pete Belotte. They immediately recorded their first solo album Lady of the Night in Germany. When making a record in her name made a mistake.
So the singer received a beautiful pseudonym Summer. The title song of the first compilation The Hostage was successful in Germany, France and other European cities.
Donna Summer: New Steps on the Path to Glory
The appearance of the composition Love to Love You Baby was fateful for the singer. The song made a splash in the Old World. Later, the single fell into the hands of the head of the label Casablanca Records from America. In 1976, the song became popular across the ocean. She peaked at number 100 on the Billboard Hot 2.
A special edition of the albums was released for American listeners. The singer, inspired by success, began fruitful work. Over the next four years, she recorded 8 albums. All of them received the "gold" status. The song Last Dance during this period was awarded the Grammy and Oscar awards, becoming the soundtrack of the film.
Genre change
In the 1970s, the singer was successful, working in the disco style. The hallmark of the performer was the sexy sound of the mezzo-soprano. Label Casablanca Records overly focused on external data, creating the singer's image of a sex bomb. Representatives of the company even began to dictate her behavior in her personal life.
With a complicated legal battle, Donna walked away from the dictators. She immediately signed a new contract with the newly formed Geffen Records.
Given that the disco style has become less popular, the performer decided to retrain. She chose such topical genres as rock and new wave. The singer recorded the next album with a long-familiar team that worked with her initially.
Difficulties on the career line
Donna entered the most difficult period of her creative activity. Work on recording a new album did not work. The situation was corrected by the appearance of the single Love is in Control, which was nominated for the Grammy Award.
Soon the work on the recording of the 11th studio album became successful. The main composition returned to its former success, and the video, which became the first in the artist's arsenal, got into MTV's active rotation. The next two albums of the singer were "failures".
The singer called the next collection Another Place and Time her favorite in the entire history of her career. The record company Geffen Records refused to release the records, citing the lack of a potential hit.
This completed the work with the label. The singer released this album in Europe, having achieved success. After that, the label Atlantic Records initiated the appearance of the disc in the United States.
Activities at the turn of the century
In the early 1990s, Donna published the first collection of her previous hits, and was also recording a new album. The records do not live up to expectations. Around the same period, the artist organized her first exhibition of paintings.
In 1992, Donna rejoiced at the appearance of a personalized star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Then the singer recorded the second collection of hits, which was also popular.
In 1994, the artist released a record with a Christmas theme.
In the late 1990s, Donna was often shown on television. The role in the sitcom "Family Matters" became noticeable. The singer received a Grammy Award for Carry On, which was recognized as the best dance song in 1998. In 1999, the singer performed at the VH1 Divas concert and recorded two live albums.
Several new songs from them reached the top of the US dance chart. In 2000, the singer participated in VH1 Divas, and also recorded the soundtrack for the movie Pokemon 2000.
In 2003, Donna published her own biography, and a year later she was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame. And in 2008, the artist released the successful album Crayons, and organized a concert tour in support of it.
Celebrity Donna Summer Personal Life
Long before her popularity, Donna married an Austrian actor. The first daughter of the artist was born immediately. The need to live with her husband's parents, the constant employment of the spouse quickly worsened relations, the marriage broke up. While still living in Europe, at the beginning of her popularity, the singer sent her daughter to America in the care of her parents. And she began to actively engage in creativity.
The next marriage was already a famous artist entered into only in 1980. The chosen one was Bruce Sudano, who worked in the Brooklyn Dreams group. The marriage produced two girls.
Donna Summer passed away on May 17, 2012 in Florida. The cause of death is listed as lung cancer. The singer was ill for a long time, but did not stop active creative activity. The plans included recording a dance album, as well as another collection of hits. This has not been done yet.
