Gladys Knight facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gladys Knight
Knight in 1997
Background information
Birth name	Gladys Maria Knight
Also known as	The Empress of Soul
Born	(1944-05-28) May 28, 1944 (age 81) Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
Genres	R&B soul pop gospel
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter actress
Years active	1948–present
Labels	Vee-Jay Motown Buddah Columbia MCA Verve

Gladys Maria Knight (born May 28, 1944) is a famous American singer and actress. She is often called the "Empress of Soul" because of her powerful voice. Gladys Knight became well-known in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. She sang with her family group, Gladys Knight & the Pips. This group included her brother Merald "Bubba" Knight and cousins William Guest and Edward Patten.

Gladys Knight has won seven Grammy Awards. Four of these were for her solo work, and three were with The Pips. She has had many hit songs. Two of her songs, "Midnight Train to Georgia" and "That's What Friends Are For", reached number one on the Billboard charts. "That's What Friends Are For" was a collaboration with Dionne Warwick, Elton John, and Stevie Wonder.

She also had eleven number-one R&B singles and six number-one R&B albums. In 1989, Knight sang the theme song for the James Bond movie Licence to Kill. Her songs "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" and "Midnight Train to Georgia" are so important that they are in the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Gladys Knight and The Pips are part of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame. Rolling Stone magazine named her one of the 100 Greatest Singers of All Time. She has also received the National Medal of Arts and Kennedy Center Honors.

Gladys Knight's Early Life and Music Beginnings

Gladys Knight was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on May 28, 1944. Her parents, Sarah Elizabeth and Merald Woodlow Knight Sr., were both singers in church and local choirs. She has a sister, Brenda, and two brothers, Merald "Bubba" Jr. and David "Billy".

Gladys started singing gospel music at her church when she was just four years old. At eight, she won a TV show contest called The Original Amateur Hour. She sang "Too Young" by Nat King Cole.

Soon after, Gladys, her brother Bubba, sister Brenda, and cousins Eleanor and William Guest sang together at Bubba's birthday party. This happened when their record player stopped working. Gladys's mother encouraged them to form a group. They decided to call themselves The Pips, named after their cousin and manager, James "Pip" Woods.

The Pips performed in churches, talent shows, and clubs. They opened for popular artists. In 1957, they signed with Brunswick Records and started releasing songs. Their first album came out in 1960 when Gladys was 16. She had already recorded five songs and had her first hit, “Every Beat of My Heart.”

Gladys took a break from the group to start a family. She later returned, and the group continued their success. She attended Booker T. Washington High School in Atlanta and later graduated from Archer High School.

Gladys Knight & The Pips: A Journey to Stardom

Knight in 1974

In 1966, Gladys Knight & the Pips joined Motown Records. Even though Motown first saw them as a smaller act, they quickly had many big hit songs. These included "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (a number one hit in 1967), "The Nitty Gritty" (1969), and "If I Were Your Woman" (1970). They also won a Grammy Award for "Neither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye)" in 1972.

The group left Motown in 1973 for Buddah Records. There, they became even more famous. They had huge hits like the Grammy-winning "Midnight Train to Georgia" (number one on both pop and R&B charts) and "Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me". In 1974, Knight and the Pips recorded the soundtrack for the movie Claudine.

The group was very popular in Europe, especially in the United Kingdom. Many of their songs became hits there years after their release in the U.S. For example, "Midnight Train to Georgia" was a Top 5 hit in the UK in 1976, three years after its success in America.

Gladys Knight and the Pips continued to have hits until the late 1970s. Due to legal issues, they had to record separately for a while. This led to Gladys Knight's first solo albums, Miss Gladys Knight (1978) and Gladys Knight (1979).

Knight and the Pips perform aboard the aircraft carrier USS Ranger in November 1981

In 1980, the group signed with Columbia Records and started making music together again. They released albums like About Love (1980) and Touch (1981). In 1983, they had another big hit with "Save the Overtime (For Me)". This song reached number one on the R&B chart. Its music video was one of the first R&B videos to include elements of hip hop culture.

In 1987, Knight decided to start a solo career. She and the Pips recorded their last album together, All Our Love. The song "Love Overboard" from this album was a number-one R&B hit and won another Grammy for the group. After a successful tour in 1988, The Pips retired, and Gladys Knight began her solo journey.

Gladys Knight & the Pips were honored in the Georgia Music Hall of Fame in 1989. They were also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996 and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001.

Gladys Knight's Solo Career and Other Projects

Even while with the Pips, Gladys Knight joined Dionne Warwick, Stevie Wonder, and Elton John for the 1985 AIDS benefit song, "That's What Friends Are For". This song was a huge hit, reaching number one on three different charts, and won a Grammy.

In 1986, Knight performed with Dionne Warwick and Patti LaBelle in an HBO special called Sisters in the Name of Love. In 1989, she sang "Licence to Kill", the title song for the James Bond movie. This song was a Top-10 hit in the UK and Germany.

Knight released her most successful solo album, Good Woman, in 1991. It reached number one on the R&B album chart. The album included the song "Superwoman", which featured Dionne Warwick and Patti LaBelle and was nominated for a Grammy. Knight also sang the national anthem at the 1991 World Series.

Her fourth solo album, Just for You, sold very well and was nominated for a Grammy in 1995. Her fifth solo album, At Last, won her first solo Grammy Award in 2000.

Gladys Knight also leads a gospel choir called Saints Unified Voices. This choir has released a Grammy-winning CD called One Voice.

Knight in concert, 2006

In 2004, Knight was a main performer at the VH1 benefit concert Divas Live 2004. She sang alongside other famous artists to support the Save the Music Foundation. In 2005, she had a duet with Ray Charles called "You Were There".

In 2009, Knight sang "His Eye Is On The Sparrow" and "The Lord's Prayer" at the funeral service for Michael Jackson. In 2013, she recorded "You And I Ain't Nothin' No More" for the movie The Butler.

Knight receiving her Kennedy Center Honor (2022)

Her album Where My Heart Belongs (2014) was her 30th album to reach the top 40 on the R&B charts. In 2019, Knight sang the national anthem at Super Bowl LIII. She also performed at the 100th Anniversary of the Delaware State Fair. In 2022, Knight received Kennedy Center Honors from U.S. President Joe Biden. She also headlined a dinner at the White House.

Gladys Knight's Acting Career

Film Roles

In 1976, Gladys Knight made her acting debut in the film Pipe Dreams. She was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for this role. In 2003, she had a small part in Hollywood Homicide, starring Harrison Ford. In 2009, Knight appeared in Tyler Perry's I Can Do Bad All by Myself.

Television Appearances

In 1975, Knight starred in her own variety show, The Gladys Knight and the Pips Show. She also appeared as a guest on many TV series in the 1980s and 1990s. These included The Jeffersons, A Different World, and Living Single. In 1985, she co-starred in the sitcom Charlie & Co. with comedian Flip Wilson.

In 2005, she played a singer in an episode of JAG. In 2009, she made a special guest appearance on Tyler Perry's House of Payne. Knight also had cameo roles in shows like Las Vegas and 30 Rock. From 2012, she had a recurring role in the sitcom The First Family.

In 2012, Knight competed on Dancing with the Stars. She was partnered with Tristan MacManus. In 2017, she appeared as herself in the TV series Star. In 2018, she played Ella Grover in an episode of Hawaii Five-0.

In 2019, she competed as "Bee" on the first season of The Masked Singer. She finished in third place.

Gladys Knight's Personal Life

Knight in 2016

In 1960, Gladys Knight married James "Jimmy" Newman. They had two children, James "Jimmy" Gaston Newman III (born 1962) and Kenya Maria Newman (born 1963). The family moved to Detroit in the early 1960s. Gladys took a break from touring to raise her children. Jimmy Newman later left the family. They divorced in 1973.

In 1974, Knight married Barry Hankerson. They had a son, Shanga Ali Hankerson, born in 1976. They divorced in 1979. In 1995, Knight married motivational speaker Les Brown, but they divorced in 1997.

Gladys Knight was raised as a Baptist and later became Catholic. In 1997, she was baptized into The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This was inspired by her daughter and son, who had joined the church. She founded the Saints Unified Voices gospel choir.

Knight's son, Jimmy Newman III, managed her career until he passed away in 1999 at age 36. After his death, her daughter Kenya Jackson took over management.

Gladys Knight married William McDowell in 2001. They live in Fairview, North Carolina. They have many grandchildren and great-grandchildren between them.

Gladys Knight's Legacy and Achievements

In 1996, Gladys Knight & the Pips were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. A year before, Knight received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. In 2007, she was given the Society of Singers ELLA Award and was officially called the "Empress of Soul".

She is on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the Greatest Singers of All Time. In 2021, Knight received the National Medal of Arts. In 2022, she received a Kennedy Center Honor. In 2023, Knight was honored with the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Discography

Studio albums

• Miss Gladys Knight (1978)
• Gladys Knight (1979)
• Good Woman (1991)
• Just for You (1994)
• Many Different Roads (1998)
• At Last (2000)
• One Voice (with Saints Unified Voices) (2005)
• Before Me (2006)
• Another Journey (2013)
• Where My Heart Belongs (2014)

Published Works

• Knight, Gladys. At Home With Gladys Knight, McGraw-Hill, 2001 – ISBN: 1-58040-075-2
• Knight, Gladys. Between Each Line of Pain and Glory: My Life Story, Hyperion Press, 1998 – ISBN: 0-7868-8371-5

Filmography

Films

Television

Awards and Honors

Grammy Awards

Gladys Knight has won five Grammys and been nominated twenty-two times.

Other Awards and Recognitions

• 1992: Essence Award for Career Achievement
• 1995: Hollywood Walk of Fame
• 1996: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• 1997: Trumpet Awards Foundation Pinnacle Award
• 2005: BET Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2007: NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Jazz Artist
• 2007: Society of Singers Ella Award, also declared the "Empress of Soul"
• 2008: BET Inaugural Best Living Legend Award
• 2008: National Black Arts Festival Honoree at Legends Celebration
• 2011: Soul Train Music Awards Lifetime Achievement Award
• 2017: National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame
• 2019: Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement
• 2021: National Medal of Arts
• 2022: 45th Annual Kennedy Center Honors

Honorary Degrees

• Honorary Doctorate in Performing Arts, Shaw University

Images for kids

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  Knight performing at the White House, 2024

• 

  Knight and Ron Winans' Chicken & Waffles in Atlanta

See also

In Spanish: Gladys Knight para niños