Betty Davis, Singer-Songwriter Who Paved the Way for Boldly Sensual Funk in 1970s, Dies at 76
variety.comA.D. Amorosi Singer-songwriter-producer Betty Davis, an icon of future-funk, fashion and bold sexuality in the 1970s, died Wednesday at age 76 in her longtime home of Homestead, Pennsylvania.Davis, who was once married to and collaborated with jazz legend Miles Davis, died of natural causes, Allegheny County communications director Amie Downs told Rolling Stone.The singer was widely viewed as having paved a way for R&B and hip-hop performers ranging from Prince and Erykah Badu to Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, even though she dropped out of the recording scene so early — all but disappearing after the mid-1970s — that thse debts were not always recognized.In her heyday, this uninhibited mistress of futuristic funk and highly sexualized lyrical and vocal prowess released three albums – 1973’s “Betty Davis,” 1974’s “They Say I’m Different” and 1975’s definitive “Nasty Gal” – that were as bold in their self-creation as she was in portraying their sensual power on each album sleeve.
Davis wrote all of her songs (save for a few on “Nasty Gal,” including “You and I,” which was penned with Miles Davis), and produced all but the first of her solo albums.
A fourth solo album, “Is It Love or Desire?” was recorded in 1976 but shelved until 2009, when it released by the Light in the Attic reissue label.Born Betty Mabry in North Carolina, but raised in the Pittsburgh area, Davis made a splash in the pop-art ’60s of New York City as a model for designers such as Halston, Betsey Johnson and Norma Kamali, and as a habitue of downtown nightclubs such as the Cellar.
Recording her first single as Betty Mabry, she released “Get Ready for Betty” in 1964 for legendary Frank Sinatra arranger Don Costa’s DCP label.
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