Betty Wright, a pop-soul hitmaker who later had a successful second career as a label owner and producer, died Sunday morning at age 66, according to a family member, according to Daily Mail.
The Miami native first rose to prominence at age 14 when her "Girls Can't Do What the Guys Can Do" was a Top 15 soul chart hit.That landed her a spot touring with James Brown. She reached her recording peak with 1971's million-selling "Clean Up Woman" and sang lead on Peter Brown's disco classic "Dance With Me."
Betty returned to the spotlight in 1994, singing along to a Marvin Gaye track that turned his "Distant Love" into a duet. It was included in Motown's 2003 release Marvin Gaye Love Songs.
Betty had many connections with other stars. She was Beyonce's vocal coach and sang backup for Stevie Wonder. She also wrote for Jennifer Lopez, Michael Jackson, and Gloria Estefan and founded her own Miss B label in the '80s. Later in her career, she co-produced a pair of tracks on the Tom Jones album 24 Hours and teamed with The Roots on a 2011 release, Betty Wright: The Movie.
Concern about Betty's health arose last week when her friend Chaka Khan tweeted that her friend was in need of prayers. (Daily Mail)