Helen Reddy: Australian singer of feminist anthem I Am Lady dies

Helen Reddy, the Australian singer behind feminist anthem I Am Lady, has died aged 78.

Reddy died on Tuesday in Los Angeles, her household stated in an announcement on Fb.

Her kids Traci Donat and Jordan Sommers described her as a “fantastic mom, grandmother, and a very formidable lady”.

“Our hearts are damaged. However we take consolation within the information that her voice will reside on eternally.”

Reddy had a string of pop and rock hits within the Nineteen Seventies, however is finest identified for the 1972 anthem I Am Lady – a rousing tune which grew to become distinguished within the ladies’s liberation motion.

A sleeper hit, it went on to promote tens of millions of copies worldwide, making Reddy the biggest-selling feminine artist globally for 2 years operating.

In amassing her 1973 Grammy Award for finest feminine vocalist, Reddy famously thanked “God as a result of she makes the whole lot potential”.

Born in Melbourne in 1941, Reddy grew up in a showbiz household with actor dad and mom, and carried out often as a baby.

After successful a expertise contest in Australia, her prize ticket took her to New York Metropolis within the Nineteen Sixties, the place she auditioned for a recording contract.

That chance fell by means of however Reddy determined to remain on within the US, later signing with Capitol Information.

Her first hit, I Do not Know Methods to Love Him, was adopted by a succession of others together with Loopy Love, Delta Daybreak, and Angie Child.

But it surely was her second hit, I Am Lady, which catapulted her to worldwide fame and have become a defining tune for a technology of girls.

Reddy stated she had penned the lyrics – with traces similar to “I’m lady, hear me roar” and “I’m robust, I’m invincible, I’m lady” – after struggling to seek out different songs which mirrored her satisfaction in being a lady.

In between touring internationally, she additionally hosted a season of the Helen Reddy Present on NBC TV at a prime-time slot in 1973.

A 12 months later she was awarded a star on the Hollywood Stroll of Fame.

Recognized with dementia in 2015, she spent the final years of her life in a star care residence in Los Angeles.

A movie biopic, titled I Am Lady, was launched in Australia earlier this 12 months.