Grammy-Winning Singer Roberta Flack Dies at 88

RADIO ONLINE | Monday, February 24, 2025 | 3:09pm CT

Roberta Flack

Roberta Flack, the legendary Pop and R&B vocalist whose soulful ballads defined an era of radio, died Monday morning at the age of 88, according to a statement from her representative. She was surrounded by family at the time of her passing.

Flack, a classically trained pianist and singer, rose to prominence in the early 1970s with a series of chart-topping hits, including "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" and "Killing Me Softly With His Song." The former, originally released in 1969, became a breakthrough hit in 1971 after Clint Eastwood selected it for his directorial debut, "Play Misty for Me." The song climbed to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, earning Flack the Grammy Award for Record of the Year. She repeated the feat in 1973 with "Killing Me Softly," a rare back-to-back win unmatched until U2 achieved the same distinction in the early 2000s.

Flack's success continued throughout the decade with collaborations such as "Where Is the Love," a duet with Donny Hathaway that also reached No. 1 in 1974. She remained a presence on the charts into the 1980s, scoring a Top 5 R&B hit with Peabo Bryson on "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" in 1983. Over the course of her career, Flack earned four Grammy Awards and 14 nominations, charting six Top 10 pop singles and 10 Top 10 R&B hits.

Born in Black Mountain, North Carolina, Flack's early musical influences included gospel greats Mahalia Jackson and Sam Cooke. A prodigious talent, she began studying piano at age 9 and, by 15, had earned a full scholarship to Howard University. She later worked as a schoolteacher while performing in Washington, D.C., nightclubs, where she was discovered by jazz pianist Les McCann, leading to her signing with Atlantic Records in 1968.

In recognition of Flack's legacy, Benztown has produced an audio tribute written and produced by Thomas Green and voiced by James MacDaniel. The tribute can be heard here.