Legendary R&B and soul performer Betty Wright has died at the age of 66, according to her niece. Her cause of death has not been revealed, but fans and friends, including Chaka Khan, have been asking for prayers for her for nearly a week, implying she was gravely ill.
A native of Miami, Florida, Wright achieved her first Top 40 single at the age of 14 with “Girls Can’t Do What the Guys Do”. Arriving three years later, Wright’s signature song, “Clean Up Woman”, spent eight weeks at No. 2 on the Billboard R&B charts in addition to peaking at No. 6 on the Billboard Top 100. “Clean Up Woman” was later sampled by a number of prominent R&B and hip-hop artists, including Mary J. Blige (“Real Woman”) and Chance the Rapper (“Favorite Song”). Even Sublime sampled the song on their 40oz. To Freedom track “Get Out!”. In 1976, Wright earned her first and only Grammy Award for “Where Is the Love”, which captured Best R&B Song.
Wright also collaborated with a wide-range of artists, appearing on songs alongside Alice Cooper (“No Tricks”), Stevie Wonder (“What Are You Gonna Do With It”), Lil Wayne (“Playing With Fire”), and Erykah Badu (“Kiss Me on My Neck (Hesi)”). Her final studio album came in 2011 with Betty Wright: The Movie, a collaboration with The Roots. In 2016, she was featured on DJ Khaled, Kendrick Lamar, and Big Sean’s single “Big Key”.
