Three-time Grammy-winning jazz and R&B singer Nancy Wilson has died at the age of 81, USA Today has reported.
According to her manager and publicist Devra Hall Levy, Wilson passed away peacefully in her home in Pioneertown, California, on Thursday, December 13 after a long-term battle with an undisclosed illness.
Nancy Wilson, who was born in Chillicothe, Ohio, in 1937, had an illustrious, decades-long music career where she found inspiration from stars such as Dinah Washington and Nat “King” Cole. Wilson has an impressive discography that includes dozens of albums and often referred to herself as a “song stylist” so not to be categorized by one genre.
“The music that I sing today was the pop music of the 1960s,” she told the San Francisco Chronicle in 2010. “I just never considered myself a jazz singer. I do not do runs and–you know. I take a lyric and make it mine. I consider myself an interpreter of the lyric.”
She made her debut with her 1961 single “Guess Who I Saw Today,” and won her first Grammy award for best R&B recording in 1965 for “(You Don’t Know) How Glad I Am,” which also reached the number 11 spot on Billboard’s Hot 100 singles chart.
Grammy-winning singer Nancy Wilson died yesterday at 81. She is also remembered as the host of NPR’s Peabody-winning series “Jazz Profiles.” https://t.co/SvPd8bwdGH
— NPR (@NPR) December 14, 2018
Wilson went on to win two more Grammys during her career. In 2005, she took home the award for Best Jazz Vocal Album with R.S.V.P. (Rare Songs, Very Personal) , and did so again in 2007 for her album Turned to Blue .
Nancy’s career also spanned into television, film, and radio. She hosted NPR’s documentary series Jazz Profiles in the 1990s and had her own variety series The Nancy Wilson Show from 1974 to 1975, which Variety reported she won an Emmy for.
According to CNN , Wilson retired from live performances in 2011 to be able to spend more time with her family.
Wilson was married twice–to drummer Kenny Dennis, whom she divorced in 1970, and Wiley Burton, who passed away in 2008. She had three children.
Since news broke of her death, many people have taken to social media to express their condolences, including singer and songwriter John Legend, who called Wilson a “magical performer.”
So sad to hear about the passing of the great Nancy Wilson. She was a magical performer. I’m so glad I was able to spend time with her and hear her beautiful voice in person.
— John Legend (@johnlegend) December 14, 2018
There will be no funeral service held for the singer, but rather a celebration of life, as per her own wishes. The celebration, USA Today reports, will likely be held in February, the month of her birth.
Nancy is survived by her son Kacy Dennis; daughters Samantha Burton and Sheryl Burton; sisters Karen Davis and Brenda Vann; and five grandchildren.
