Gloria Gaynor ( née Fowles; born September 7, 1943) is an American singer, best known for the disco era hits "

I Will Survive "I Will Survive" is a song by American singer Gloria Gaynor, released in October 1978 as the second single from her sixth album, '' Love Tracks'' (1978). It was written by Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris. A top-selling song, it is a popular di ...

" (1978), " Let Me Know (I Have a Right)" (1979), " I Am What I Am" (1983), and her version of "

Never Can Say Goodbye "Never Can Say Goodbye" is a song written by Clifton Davis and originally recorded by The Jackson 5. The song was originally written and intended for the Supremes; however, Motown decided it would be better for the Jackson 5. It was the first ...

" (1974).

Early life

Gaynor was born Gloria Fowles in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area. to Daniel Fowles and Queenie Mae Proctor. Her grandmother lived nearby and was involved in her upbringing. "There was always music in our house", Gaynor wrote in her autobiography ''I Will Survive''. She enjoyed listening to the radio, and to records by

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

and Sarah Vaughan. Her father played the

ukulele The ukulele ( ; from haw, ukulele , approximately ), also called Uke, is a member of the lute family of instruments of Portuguese origin and popularized in Hawaii. It generally employs four nylon strings. The tone and volume of the instrumen ...

and guitar and sang professionally in nightclubs with a group called Step 'n' Fetchit. Gloria grew up a

tomboy A tomboy is a term for a girl or a young woman with masculine qualities. It can include wearing androgynous or unfeminine clothing and actively engage in physical sports or other activities and behaviors usually associated with boys or men. W ...

; she had five brothers and one sister. Her brothers sang

gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...

and formed a quartet with a friend. Gaynor was not allowed to sing with the all-male group, nor was her younger brother Arthur, as Gloria was a girl and he was too young. Arthur later acted as a tour manager for Gaynor. The family was relatively poor, but Gaynor recalls the house being filled with laughter and happiness, and the dinner table being open to neighborhood friends. They moved to a housing project in 1960, where Gaynor attended South Side High School; she graduated in 1961. "All through my young life I wanted to sing, although nobody in my family knew it", Gaynor wrote in her autobiography. Gaynor began singing in a night club in Newark, where she was recommended to a local band by a neighbor. After several years of performing in local clubs and along the East Coast, Gaynor began her recording career in 1971 at Columbia Records.

Early career

Gaynor was a singer with the Soul Satisfiers, a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

and

R&B music Rhythm and blues, frequently abbreviated as R&B or R'n'B, is a genre of popular music that originated in African-American communities in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly ...

band, in the 1960s. She recorded "She'll Be Sorry/Let Me Go Baby" (for the first time as ''Gloria Gaynor'') in 1965, for

Johnny Nash John Lester Nash Jr. (August 19, 1940October 6, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter, best known in the United States for his 1972 hit " I Can See Clearly Now". Primarily a reggae and pop singer, he was one of the first non-Jamaican artists ...

's "Jocida" label. Her first real success came in 1973 when she was signed to Columbia Records by Clive Davis. The fruit of that was the release of the flop single "Honey Bee". Moving on to MGM Records she finally hit with the album ''

''. The first side of the album consisted of three songs ("Honey Bee", "

", and "

Reach Out, I'll Be There "Reach Out I'll Be There" (also formatted as "Reach Out (I'll Be There)") is a song recorded by the Four Tops from their fourth studio album '' Reach Out'' (1967). Written and produced by Motown's main production team, Holland–Dozier–Holland, ...

"), with no break between the songs. This 19-minute dance marathon proved to be enormously popular, especially at dance clubs. All three songs were released as singles via radio edits and all of them became hits. The album was instrumental in introducing disco music to the public, "Never Can Say Goodbye" becoming the first song to top '' Billboard'' magazine's dance chart. It was also a hit on the mainstream Pop Charts, peaking at No. 9, and on the

R&B Charts The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

, reaching No. 34 (the original version by

The Jackson 5 The Jackson 5 (sometimes stylized as the Jackson 5ive, also known as the Jacksons) are an American pop band composed of members of the Jackson family. The group was founded in 1964 in Gary, Indiana, and for most o ...

had been a No. 2 hit on the Hot 100 in 1971). It also marked her first significant chart success internationally, making it into the Top 5 in Australia, Canada, Germany and the UK. The song would go on to be certified silver by the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...

, and subsequently gold in the US. Capitalizing on the success of her first album, Gaynor quickly released her follow-up, '' Experience Gloria Gaynor'', later that same year. Some of her lesser-known singles, due to lack of recurrent airplay—including "Honey Bee" (1974), "Casanova Brown" (1975), and "Let's Make a Deal" (1976), as well as her cover of the Four Tops' "Reach Out, I'll Be There"—became hits in nightclubs and reached the Top 5 on '' Billboard''s disco charts. Many charted on the Hot 100 and R&B charts as well, with songs like "(If You Want It) Do It Yourself"—a No. 1 disco hit—peaking at No. 98 on the Pop Charts and No. 24 on the R&B Charts. Gaynor's cover of "

How High the Moon "How High the Moon" is a jazz standard with lyrics by Nancy Hamilton and music by Morgan Lewis. It was first featured in the 1940 Broadway revue '' Two for the Show'', where it was sung by Alfred Drake and Frances Comstock. In ''Two for the S ...

" topped the US Dance Charts, and made the lower parts of both the pop and R&B charts, as well as achieving some international chart success. After her 1976 album '' I've Got You'', Gaynor shifted from her hit production team to work with other producers. She has recorded some 16 albums since, including one in England, one in Germany, and two in Italy.

Major mainstream breakthrough

In the next few years, Gaynor released two albums '' Glorious'' and ''

Gloria Gaynor's Park Avenue Sound ''Gloria Gaynor's Park Avenue Sound'' is the fifth album by Gloria Gaynor. It was released in 1978 on Polydor Records. History ''Gloria Gaynor's Park Avenue Sound'' includes the moderate hit singles, "You're All I Need To Get By" and "This Love A ...

'', but would only enjoy a few more moderate hits. However, in late 1978, with the release of her album '' Love Tracks'', she climbed the pop charts again with her smash hit single "

". The lyrics of this song are written from the point of view of a woman, recently dumped, telling her former lover that she can cope without him and does not want anything more to do with him. The song has become something of an anthem of female

emancipation Emancipation generally means to free a person from a previous restraint or legal disability. More broadly, it is also used for efforts to procure economic and social rights, political rights or equality, often for a specifically disenfranch ...

. Originally, "I Will Survive" was a B-side when

Polydor Records Polydor Records Ltd. is a German-British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in the United States. ...

released it in late 1978. The

A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...

, a song called "Substitute", then a recent worldwide hit for South African girl-group Clout, was considered more "radio friendly". Boston disco radio DJ Jack King turned the record over and recalls being stunned by what he heard: "I couldn't believe they were burying this monster hit on the B-side", stated King. "I played it and played it and my listeners went nuts!". The massive audience response forced the record company to flip the songs, so that subsequent copies of the single listed the more popular song on the A-side. King was honored at New York's Disco Masters Awards Show for three consecutive years (1979–1981) in recognition of his relentless push of the song. He was also named "Most Influential Radio Personality of the Year" (1980) by ''Rock & Records'' magazine. Gaynor and King each received a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

for Best Disco Recording in 1980, the only year that award was given (Gloria had to wait another 40 years for her second Grammy, in the

Grammy Award for Best Roots Gospel Album The Grammy Award for Best Roots Gospel Album has been an award category at the annual Grammy Awards since 2015. The award was first approved by the board of trustees of the Grammy Awards in June 2014. According to NARAS, the award was introdu ...

category). It is ranked No. 492 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

''s list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and ranked at No. 97 on

Billboard magazine ''Billboard'' (stylized as ''billboard'') is an American music and entertainment magazine published weekly by Penske Media Corporation. The magazine provides music charts, news, video, opinion, reviews, events, and style related to the musi ...

's "All-Time Hot 100". In 2000, the song was ranked No. 1 in VH1's list of the "100 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" and remains there to this day. As a disco number, the song was unique for its time by virtue of Gaynor's having no background singers or lush production. And, unlike her first disco hits, the track was not pitched up to make it faster and to render Gaynor's recorded voice in a higher register than that in which she actually sang. Most disco hits at the time were heavily produced, with multiple voices, orchestrations, overdubs, and adjustments to pitch and speed. "I Will Survive" had a much sparer and "cleaner" sound. Had it been originally planned and released as an A-side, it would almost certainly have undergone a substantially more heavy-handed remix. In late 1979, she released the album '' I Have a Right'' which contained her next disco hit, "Let Me Know (I Have a Right)", which featured Doc Severinsen of ''

The Tonight Show ''The Tonight Show'' is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. The show has been hosted by six comedians: Steve Allen (1954–1957), Jack Paar (1957–1962), Johnny Carson (1962–1992), Jay Leno (1992–2009 and 201 ...

'' fame, playing a trumpet solo. Gaynor also recorded a disco song called "Love Is Just a Heartbeat Away" in 1979 for the cult vampire film '' Nocturna: Granddaughter of Dracula'', which featured a number of disco songs.

Stateside career

In 1980 and again in 1981, Gaynor released two disco albums which were virtually ignored in the United States due to the backlash against disco, which began late in 1979. The album's singles barely registered on

urban contemporary Urban contemporary music, also known as urban music, hip hop, urban pop, or just simply urban, is a music radio format. The term was coined by New York radio DJ Frankie Crocker in the early to mid-1970s as a synonym for Black music. Urban conte ...

radio, where disco music remained popular. In 1982, having looked into a wide variety of faiths and religious movements, she became a Christian and began to distance herself from a past she considered to be

sin In a religious context, sin is a transgression against divine law. Each culture has its own interpretation of what it means to commit a sin. While sins are generally considered actions, any thought, word, or act considered immoral, selfish, s ...

ful. That same year, she released an album of mid-tempo R&B and pop-style songs entitled '' Gloria Gaynor''. Gaynor would achieve her final success in the 1980s with the release of her album '' I Am Gloria Gaynor'' in 1984. This was mainly due to the song " I Am What I Am", which became a hit at dance clubs, and then on the

Club Play Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as th ...

chart in late 1983/early 1984. " I Am What I Am" became a

gay anthem A gay anthem is a popular song that has become widely popular among, or has become identified with, the gay community, although some of these songs have also become anthems for the wider LGBT community. Not all songs labelled as "gay anthems" ...

and made Gaynor a

gay icon A gay icon is a public figure who is regarded as a cultural icon of some members of the LGBT community. The most widely recognized gay icons are often actresses and singers who garnered large LGBT fanbases, such as Judy Garland, Madonna, Diana Ros ...

. Her 1986 album, '' The Power of Gloria Gaynor'', was almost entirely composed of cover versions of other songs that were popular at the time.

Career revival

Gaynor's career received a revitalizing spark in the early and mid 1990s with the worldwide disco revival movement. During the late 1990s, she dabbled in acting for a while, guest starring on ''

The Wayans Bros ''The Wayans Bros.'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on The WB from January 11, 1995, to May 20, 1999. The series starred real life brothers Shawn and Marlon Wayans. The series also starred John Witherspoon and Anna Maria Hors ...

'', ''

That '70s Show ''That '70s Show'' is an American television period teen sitcom that aired on Fox from August 23, 1998, to May 18, 2006. The series focuses on the lives of a group of six teenage friends living in the fictional town of Point Place, Wisconsin, ...

'' (singing "I Will Survive"), and '' Ally McBeal,'' before doing a limited engagement performance in Broadway's '' Smokey Joe's Cafe''. In 2001, Gaynor performed "I Will Survive" at the 30th Anniversary concert for

Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the "King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over a ...

. Gaynor returned to the recording studio in 2002, releasing her first album in over 15 years, ''I Wish You Love''. The two singles released from the album, "Just Keep Thinking About You" and "I Never Knew", both topped ''Billboard'''s Hot Dance Music/Club Play. Both singles also secured moderate to heavy dance format radio airplay. The latter song also charted No. 30 on ''Billboard'''s

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

chart. In 2004, Gaynor re-released her 1997 album '' The Answer'' (also released under the title ''What a Life'') as a follow up to her successful album '' I Wish You Love''. The album includes her club hit "Oh, What a Life". In late 2002, Gaynor appeared with R&B stars on the "Rhythm, Love, and Soul" edition of the

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

series ''American Soundtrack''. Her performance of the disco hit "I Will Survive" and new single "I Never Knew" was included on the accompanying live album that was released in 2004. On September 19, 2005, Gaynor was honored twice when she and her music were inducted into the

Dance Music Hall of Fame The Dance Music Hall of Fame was an organization established in 2003 to honor and remember significant contributors to the genre of dance music. It had its first inductions in 2004 but went inactive after the 2005 induction ceremony. History The Da ...

, in the "Artist" category, along with fellow disco artists

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Pronounced Chick. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English diction ...

and Sylvester. Her classic anthem "I Will Survive" was inducted under the "Records" category. In January 2008, the American Diabetes Association named Gaynor the Honorary Spokesperson of the 2008 "NYC Step Out to Fight Diabetes Walk". More television appearances followed in the late 2000s with 2009 appearances on ''The John Kerwin Show'', ''

The Wendy Williams Show ''The Wendy Williams Show'' (often shortened to ''Wendy'') is an American syndicated talk show created and hosted by Wendy Williams, and produced by Wendy Williams Productions, along with Perler Productions. The show is distributed by Debmar- ...

'', and '' The View'' to promote the 30th anniversary of "I Will Survive". In 2010, she appeared on ''

Last Comic Standing ''Last Comic Standing'' was an American reality television talent competition show on NBC that aired from June 1, 2003, to August 9, 2010, then again in 2014 and 2015. The goal of the program was to select a comedian from an initially large group ...

'' and ''

''. Forty years after its release, Gaynor continues to ride the success of "I Will Survive", touring the country and the world over and performing her signature song on dozens of TV shows. A few successful remixes of the song during the 1990s and 2000s along with new versions of the song by

Lonnie Gordon Lonnie Gordon (born November 8, 1965, Philadelphia) is an American female dance, pop and R&B singer and songwriter. She scored several chart hits during the 1990s, most notably for her 1990 UK top 10 single '' Happenin' All Over Again''. Earl ...

, Diana Ross,

Chantay Savage Chantay Savage (born July 16, 1971) is an American R&B/dance singer. She experienced some success in the 1990s on various ''Billboard'' singles charts, one of which was "I Will Survive", a reworking of the Gloria Gaynor hit song. Savage has sc ...

, rock group Cake and others, as well as constant recurrent airplay on nearly all

soft AC Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...

and rhythmic format radio stations have helped to keep the song in the mainstream. Gaynor said of her biggest hit in a 2012 interview: "It feels great to have such a song like that because I get kids five and six years old telling me they like the song, and then people seventy-five and eighty. It's quite an honor."Ask American Profile. Published in ''American Profile'' newsmagazine. January 29, 2012 edition. Page 2. The song was revived yet again in 2015 for the film '' The Martian'', where it is used at the end as the credits roll. Gaynor released a contemporary Christian album in late 2013. Gaynor performing in 2012 On May 16, 2015, Gaynor was awarded the honorary degree of

Doctor of Music The Doctor of Music degree (D.Mus., D.M., Mus.D. or occasionally Mus.Doc.) is a higher doctorate awarded on the basis of a substantial portfolio of compositions and/or scholarly publications on music. Like other higher doctorates, it is granted b ...

Dowling College Dowling College was a private college on Long Island, New York. It was established in 1968 and had its main campus located in Oakdale, New York on the site of William K. Vanderbilt's mansion Idle Hour. Dowling also included a campus in Shirley, ...

. In 2017, she made a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

as a flight attendant in a

Capital One Capital One Financial Corporation is an American bank holding company specializing in credit cards, auto loans, banking, and savings accounts, headquartered in McLean, Virginia with operations primarily in the United States. It is on the li ...

commercial, while

Samuel L. Jackson Samuel Leroy Jackson (born December 21, 1948) is an American actor and producer. One of the most widely recognized actors of his generation, the films in which he has appeared have collectively grossed over $27 billion worldwide, making him ...

Charles Barkley Charles Wade Barkley (born February 20, 1963) is an American former professional basketball player who is a television analyst on NBA on TNT, TNT. Nicknamed "Sir Charles", "Chuck", and "the Round Mound of Rebound", Barkley played 16 seasons ...

, and

Spike Lee Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee (born March 20, 1957) is an American film director, producer, screenwriter, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres and a Mule Filmworks, has produced more than 35 films since 1983. He made his directorial debut ...

sang "I Will Survive". In 2016, "I Will Survive" was selected for induction into the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry. On May 6, 2017, Gaynor performed with her band at the

Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is the research library that officially serves the United States Congress and is the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It is the oldest federal cultural institution in the country. The library ...

' celebration of disco music at Bibliodiscotheque, a disco dance party in the Great Hall of the

Thomas Jefferson Building The Thomas Jefferson Building is the oldest of the four United States Library of Congress buildings. Built between 1890 and 1897, it was originally known as the Library of Congress Building. It is now named for the 3rd U.S. president Thomas Jeffe ...

. Due to the devastation wreaked by Hurricane Harvey on the state of Texas in August 2017, Gaynor rewrote the lyrics to "I Will Survive", changing the title to "Texas Will Survive", and posted a video of herself singing the song on

Twitter Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...

on August 30, 2017. In January 2020, she won her second Grammy Award in her career, 40 years after her first, for her roots gospel album ''Testimony''. In 2021, Gaynor returned to disco music when she recorded "Can’t Stop Writing Songs About You" with Australian singer Kylie Minogue for the reissue of Minogue's fifteenth studio album '' Disco'' entitled ''Disco: Guest List Edition''. The collaboration occurred following Gaynor praising Minogue for keeping Disco alive with her album of the same name. In April 2021, Gaynor recorded "Brand New" with the veteran

Contemporary Christian Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...

band

MercyMe MercyMe is an American contemporary Christian music band founded in Edmond, Oklahoma. The band consists of lead vocalist Bart Millard, percussionist Robby Shaffer, bassist Nathan Cochran and guitarists Michael Scheuchzer and Barry Graul. The b ...

. In 2022, Gaynor competed in season eight of ''

The Masked Singer ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'' as "Mermaid" who rode on a giant clam-like vehicle that the Men in Black had to push around. After being eliminated on "Andrew Lloyd Webber Night" alongside

Mario Cantone Mario Cantone (born December 9, 1959) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and singer with numerous appearances on Comedy Central including ''Chappelle's Show''. He also played Anthony Marentino in ''Sex and the City'' and Terri in ''Men In T ...

as "Maize", Gaynor did her performance of "I Will Survive".

Personal life

Gaynor married her manager Linwood Simon in 1979. The couple divorced in 2005. She has no children. According to Gaynor, while she always wanted children, her ex-husband never desired any.

Discography

*''

'' (1975) *'' Experience Gloria Gaynor'' (1975) *'' I've Got You'' (1976) *'' Glorious'' (1977) *''

'' (1978) *'' Love Tracks'' (1978) *'' I Have a Right'' (1979) *'' Stories'' (1980) *''

I Kinda Like Me ''I Kinda Like Me'' is the ninth album by Gloria Gaynor. It failed to make an impact because of the then current, now defunct Disco backlash. Includes the single, "Let's Mend What's Been Broken." "I Love You Cause" was dedicated to her then husba ...

'' (1981) *'' Gloria Gaynor'' (1982) *'' I Am Gloria Gaynor'' (1984) *'' The Power of Gloria Gaynor'' (1986) *''Love Affair'' (1992) *'' I'll Be There'' (1994) *'' The Answer'' (1997) *'' I Wish You Love'' (2003) *''I Will Survive'' (2013) *''

Testimony In law and in religion, testimony is a solemn attestation as to the truth of a matter. Etymology The words "testimony" and "testify" both derive from the Latin word ''testis'', referring to the notion of a disinterested third-party witness. ...

'' (2019)

References

External links

* * *
Gloria Gaynor interview
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaynor, Gloria 1943 births Living people African-American actresses African-American Christians 20th-century African-American women singers American dance musicians American disco musicians American disco singers American women pop singers American film actresses American Hi-NRG musicians American house musicians American mezzo-sopranos American soul singers American television actresses American women in electronic music Grammy Award winners Malcolm X Shabazz High School alumni Musicians from Newark, New Jersey New Jersey Hall of Fame inductees People from Cliffside Park, New Jersey People from Green Brook Township, New Jersey 21st-century African-American people 21st-century African-American women