Brenda Lee facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Brenda Lee
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Lee in 1965
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Brenda Mae Tarpley |
| Born | December 11, 1944 Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | 1951–present |
| Labels |
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Brenda Mae Tarpley (born December 11, 1944), known as Brenda Lee, is an American singer. She sings rockabilly, pop, country, and Christmas music. Brenda got her first hit song at age 12 in 1957. People started calling her "Little Miss Dynamite" because of her powerful voice.
Some of her most famous songs include "Sweet Nothin's", "I'm Sorry", and "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree". In 2023, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" became number one on the U.S. Billboard chart. This made Brenda Lee the oldest artist ever to have a number one song!
Brenda Lee has sold over 100 million records worldwide. This makes her one of the most successful American artists of the 20th century. She was the second woman to ever reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 with her song "I'm Sorry" in 1960. In the 1960s, Billboard named her the Top Female Artist of the Decade. She also charted more songs than almost anyone else, behind only Elvis Presley, the Beatles, and Ray Charles.
Brenda Lee has won many awards, including a Grammy Award. She is the first woman to be in both the Country Music Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In 2023, Rolling Stone magazine called her one of the greatest singers of all time.
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Brenda Lee's Early Life
Brenda Mae Tarpley was born on December 11, 1944, in Atlanta, Georgia. Her parents were Annie Grayce and Ruben Lindsey Tarpley. Her family was very poor. They often moved because her father looked for work. Brenda shared a bed with her brother and sister in small houses without running water.
Her family was very involved with their Baptist church. Brenda started singing solos there every Sunday. Her father died in 1953 when she was only eight years old. By age ten, Brenda was the main person earning money for her family. She sang at events and on local radio and TV shows.
Brenda was very short, only 4 feet 9 inches tall. When she sang on the country music show TV Ranch, the host had to put her on a wooden crate so she could reach the microphone!
How Brenda Lee Became Famous
Brenda's amazing voice and stage presence got her noticed from a young age. When she was five, she won her school's talent show. She sang "Take Me Out to the Ball Game". After that, she appeared regularly on local radio and TV.
Her Big Break
In February 1955, Brenda was ten years old. She went to see a show by Red Foley in Augusta, Georgia. A local radio DJ convinced Foley to let her sing. Brenda sang "Jambalaya" on stage without any practice. Foley was amazed by her voice. He said her voice gave him "cold chills."
On March 31, 1955, Brenda made her national TV debut on Ozark Jubilee. She appeared on the show many times after that. In July 1956, Decca Records offered her a contract. Her first record was "Jambalaya." Her second record had two Christmas songs. Even though she was almost 12, her first records said she was "Little Brenda Lee (9 Years Old)."
In 1957, her song "One Step at a Time" became a hit. Her next hit was "Dynamite." This song gave her the famous nickname "Little Miss Dynamite."
Her Biggest Hits
Brenda Lee had her greatest success from the late 1950s to the mid-1960s. She sang rockabilly and rock and roll songs. Some of her biggest hits were "Sweet Nothin's", "I Want to Be Wanted", and "All Alone Am I". She had nine songs in a row reach the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. This was a record for a female singer until 1986.
In 1958, when Brenda was 13, she recorded "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree". It was written by Johnny Marks, who wrote other famous Christmas songs. The song was released but didn't sell well at first. However, over the years, it became a huge hit. It has sold over five million copies! Since 2017, the song has returned to the Billboard Hot 100 every Christmas season. In 2023, it finally reached number one.
In 1960, Brenda recorded her most famous song, "I'm Sorry". The record company waited to release it because Brenda was only 15. They worried she wouldn't understand the love song. But the song became a massive hit, reaching number one in the U.S. It was her first gold record and was nominated for a Grammy Award.
Her last top-ten pop song in the U.S. (besides "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree") was "Losing You" in 1963.
International Success
Brenda Lee was also very popular in the United Kingdom. She performed on British TV in 1959, even before she was widely known in the U.S. Her first UK hit was "Sweet Nothin's" in 1960. She also had hits in the UK that were not released as singles in the U.S., like "Speak to Me Pretty" and "Here Comes That Feeling".
In 1962, Brenda toured West Germany. She performed at the Star-Club in Hamburg, where the Beatles were her opening act! She toured the UK many times, performing for Queen Elizabeth II in 1964.
Later Career and Awards
In the early 1970s, Brenda Lee became a country music artist again. She had several top ten country hits, like "Nobody Wins" (1973) and "Sunday Sunrise" (1973).
In 1982, she released an album called The Winning Hand with Dolly Parton, Kris Kristofferson, and Willie Nelson. It was a big hit on the country albums chart.
Autobiography and Hall of Fame
Brenda Lee's autobiography, Little Miss Dynamite: The Life and Times of Brenda Lee, was published in 2002. She no longer tours much but is very involved with the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. She often announces new members and presents them with their awards.
"Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" Returns!
Since 2015, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" has returned to the Billboard Hot 100 chart every Christmas. From 2019 to 2022, it reached number two, just behind Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas Is You".
In November 2023, to celebrate the song's 65th anniversary, Brenda Lee released a new music video. It featured her lip-syncing to the song at a party with other country stars. She also joined TikTok to promote the song.
On December 9, 2023, "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" finally reached number one on the Hot 100! This was Brenda Lee's third number one hit. At 78 years old, she became the oldest artist ever to top the Hot 100. She even broke her own age record when she turned 79 while the song was still number one.
In December 2024, Spotify announced that "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" is one of the top 10 most streamed holiday songs of all time. It has been streamed over a billion times! The song was also certified 7 times Platinum for selling 7 million copies in the U.S.
Also in December 2024, the song was named the Official Holiday Song of Tennessee at the Tennessee State Capitol.
Awards and Recognition
Brenda Lee has received many honors for her music.
- In 1986, she was inducted into the Atlanta Music Hall of Fame.
- In 1997, she joined the Country Music Hall of Fame.
- In 2002, she was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
- In 2009, she received a Lifetime Achievement Grammy Award.
- In 2023, Rolling Stone magazine ranked her among the 200 Greatest Singers of All Time.
Grammy Awards
The Grammy Awards are given by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences (NARAS) in the United States. They honor amazing achievements in the music industry.
| Year | Category | Nominated work | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Best Female Pop Vocal Performance | "I'm Sorry" | Nominated |
| 1970 | Best Female Pop Vocal Performance | "Johnny One Time" | Nominated |
| 1980 | Best Female Country Vocal Performance | "Tell Me What It's Like" | Nominated |
| 1999 | Grammy Hall of Fame | "I'm Sorry" | Inducted |
| 2009 | Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award | Brenda Lee | Won |
| 2019 | Grammy Hall of Fame | "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" | Inducted |
Brenda Lee's Family Life
Brenda Lee met Charles Ronald "Ronnie" Shacklett in November 1962. They got married less than six months later, on April 24, 1963. Brenda and Ronnie have two daughters and three grandchildren.
Brenda Lee's Music Albums
- Rock The Bop (1957)
- Grandma, What Great Songs You Sang! (1959)
- Brenda Lee (1960)
- This Is...Brenda (1960)
- Emotions (1961)
- All the Way (1961)
- Sincerely (1962)
- Brenda, That's All (1962)
- All Alone Am I (1963)
- ..."Let Me Sing" (1963)
- By Request (1964)
- Merry Christmas from Brenda Lee (1964)
- Brenda Lee Sings Top Teen Hits (1965)
- The Versatile Brenda Lee (1965)
- Too Many Rivers (1965)
- One Rainy Night in Tokyo (1965)
- Bye Bye Blues (1966)
- Coming on Strong (1966)
- Reflections in Blue (1967)
- For the First Time (1968; with Pete Fountain)
- Johnny One Time (1969)
- Memphis Portrait (1970)
- Brenda (1973)
- New Sunrise (1973)
- Brenda Lee Now (1974)
- Sincerely, Brenda Lee (1975)
- L.A. Sessions (1976)
- Even Better (1980)
- Take Me Back (1980)
- Only When I Laugh (1981)
- The Winning Hand (1982; with Kris Kristofferson, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton)
- Feels So Right (1985)
- Brenda Lee (1991)
- A Brenda Lee Christmas (1991)
- Precious Memories (1997)
- Gospel Duets with Treasured Friends (2007)
Images for kids
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Billboard ad for "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree", November 21, 1960
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Brenda Lee at the Granada, Sutton, April 1962
See also
In Spanish: Brenda Lee para niños
