Patti LaBelle, one of the legendary ladies of pop music and one of the grande dames of Black music, said she had no problem turning 60 when that year arrived.
In fact, when she was in her fifties, she publicly acknowledged being a diva and pointed out that at 60 she would be “an awesome diva.”
And that she is. So are Diana Ross, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Dionne Warwick, Tina Turner and Chaka Khan. They are, in fact, superdivas. So is Natalie Cole. Janet Jackson is getting close, as is Whitney Houston (if she can keep herself together).
What is a “superdiva”?
They are the ladies whose achievements have been nothing less than monumental. Their impact is deeper than an ocean. Their style can be imitated but never duplicated. They have so many hit records — many of them classics — that it is mind-boggling. And they have been performing and recording for three decades or more (usually more).
Superdivas are royalty.
Do any of the top ladies of song today, including Alicia Keys, Mary J. Blige, Beyoncé Knowles, Mariah Carey and Rihanna, have what it takes to become a superdiva? Time will tell.
ALICIA KEYS, currently burning up the charts and the airwaves with her new album, “The Element of Freedom,” featuring the cleverly titled “Try Sleeping With a Broken Heart,” is a potent force. She also sings on Jay-Z’s superhit, “Empire State of Mind.”
The singer/pianist/songwriter/producer (real name: Alicia Cook) hit the music scene in a big way in 2001 with an album a long time in the making titled “Songs in A Minor.” In addition to going multi-Platinum and selling all over the world, the album earned five Grammy awards for Keys in 2002. One of them was the coveted Best New Artist award.
Keys has been playing piano and singing since the tender age of 7, and enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School in her native New York City.
“Songs in A Minor” was no fluke. The follow-ups, “The Diary of Alicia Keys” and the live set, “Unplugged,” were also smash hits, as was “As I Am.” Her superhit singles include “Fallin’,” “You Don’t Know My Name” and “If I Ain’t Got You.”
Keys is also a formidable actress, having appeared in several films.
MARY J. BLIGE has come a long way since her emergence in 1992 with the album “What’s the 411?” She was instantly crowned the queen of hip-hop soul. Like Keys, she hails from New York.
Not everyone is aware of the fact that Detroit’s own Anita Baker (a superstar but not quite a superdiva) figures indirectly into Blige’s career. While still in her teens, a non-professional recording Blige had made, a rendition of Baker’s “Caught Up in the Rapture,” found its way to the president/CEO of Uptown Records. She was signed in 1989, although her first album was not released until 1992. It clicked with radio and the public, and Blige was on her way.
She started out with a strong street edge, but became more sophisticated (and well-dressed) with each album release. Those albums, featuring many autobiographical songs, include “My Life,” “Share My World,” “Mary,” “No More Drama,” “Love & Life,” “The Breakthrough,” “Growing Pains” and the current “Stronger With Each Tear.”
Today, Mary J. Blige is an established star.
BEYONCE KNOWLES was born to be an entertainer — and to be a superstar. The hard-working singer/songwriter/producer/actress has that special ingredient that some identify as “the ‘it’ factor.” An artist either has it or they don’t. It cannot be created, and certainly cannot be faked.
Destiny’s Child took the world by storm from the late 1990s to the mid-2000s, accumulating a remarkable run of major hits and winning every award imaginable. They rank with the Supremes as the most successful female vocal groups of all time.
Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams were, in fact, admirers of the Supremes, the ultimate “glam” group. Beyoncé also admires Tina Turner and is strongly influenced by her with regard to body movement and stage presentation.
The massive success of Destiny’s Child notwithstanding, there is something to be said for quitting while you’re on top. The ladies went their separate ways (amicably) and no one was surprised when “B” reached even greater heights. (Kelly and Michelle have done well, too.)
Beyoncé’s solo albums, “Dangerously Love,” “B’Day” and “I Am…Sasha Fierce” were massive hits, yielding the popular singles “Crazy in Love,” “Irreplaceable,” “Déjà vu” and, of course, “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)” with its much-viewed video.
Knowles is also a quality actress, as demonstrated in, among others, “Dreamgirls” and “The Fighting Temptations.”
MARIAH CAREY made her debut in 1990 and quickly found an enthusiastic and loyal audience. She, in fact, outsold all other female vocalists in the 1990s.
Most recently represented on the charts with “Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel,” Carey’s rise to superstardom was meteoric and in some respects had fairy tale elements. Her first hit single, “Vision of Love,” seemed to signal that a new star had arrived, and her five-octave range reminded many of Minnie Riperton whose voice regularly soared into the stratosphere.
Although Carey had one success after another, and probably has enough plaques, trophies, Platinum records, etc. to fill a large room in her home, there have always been those who felt it was “too much.”
Carey counters with, “As soon as you have big success, a lot of people don’t like that. There’s nothing I can do about it. All I can do is make music I believe in.”
“The Emancipation of Mimi,” a 2005 release, gave Mariah Carey’s career a major boost, following a comparatively slow period. It was, in fact, the biggest selling album of that year.
RIHANNA hasn’t been around as long as the other ladies cited here, but her success has made her a candidate for superstardom.
Almost as much “fashionista” as singer/performer, Barbados-born Rihanna (birth name: Robyn Rihanna Fenty), who is also a model, moved to the United States when she was 16, with strong determination to become a successful recording artist.
Her introductory album in 2005, “Music of the Sun,” sold well and her second one, “A Girl Like Me,” did even better. However, it was her third release, “Good Girl Gone Bad,” that established Rihanna as a main attraction. Three singles from it, “Umbrella,” “Take a Bow” and “Disturbia,” all reached No. 1.
Last year, Rihanna was all over the news after it was revealed that she had been brutalized by her then-boyfriend, singer/actor Chris Brown. Some believe that sympathy for her helped make her latest release, “Rated R,” even bigger.
Rihanna is a huge fan of Mariah Carey.