Short Information about Donna Summer: Donna Summer was one of the most famous American singers of the disco period. In 1968, she released her first single, "Aquarius," a German version of the song from the musical "Hair. Summer. She is the daughter of Summer and her first husband Helmut Sommer, an Austrian actor she met while touring and singing back-up in Germany. So with that mentality we just backed out of it. Summer taped a live television special for VH1 titled Donna Summer Live & More Encore, producing the second-highest ratings for the network that year, after their annual Divas special. They divorced in 1972, but she used the anglicized version of his name for her brand. This album would attain Gold status. Several subsequent singles included Donna performing with the group, and the name "Gayn Pierre" was used while performing in Godspell with Helmuth Sommer during 1972. The Drifters cover "There Goes My Baby" reached No. Donna . In late 1983, David Geffen enlisted "She Works Hard for the Money's" producer Michael Omartian to produce Cats Without Claws. [citation needed] During the recording of the project, Neil Bogart died of cancer in May 1982 at age 39. [25] Over the years, a few of the tracks would be released. She is known for her famous albums such as Bad Girls, I Remember Yesterday, Live & More Encore and many more. Donna Summer - Love To Love You Baby, Live on The Midnight Special 1976. Summer was also nominated for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance for "Protection", penned for her by Bruce Springsteen. 3 on the Hot 100 chart. Mimi Sommer (bottom left) is the daughter of the late singer, Donna Sommer and her husband, Helmuth Sommer. A five-time Grammy Award winner, Donna truly was the 'Queen of Disco.' Love's Unkind by Donna Summer from I Remember Yesterday . The single went to No. Harriette decides to give Oona a makeover to help her come out of her shell and she takes her to a karaoke bar for a singing contest . generally used form. However, the album was commercially unsuccessful, failing to enter the US Billboard 200 and any chart outside the United States. Love's Unkind (1977) I Remember Yesterday was another concept album, this time with each track . Brooklyn Sudano, the second-eldest of Summer's three children, says it wasn't all glamour, though. 74 Likes, 2 Comments - Donna O'Reilly-Einemann (@donnaeinemann.douglaselliman) on Instagram: " out SPBC! Apart from being featured in her mother's music videos, her on-screen career began when she replaced Megan Good on Damon Wayan's sitcom, "My Wife and Kid's. In 1979 she had two more #1 singles, "Bad Girls" and "Hot Stuff,"from her "Bad Girl" album. "This recipe dates back many many years and is now a family heirloom recipe. She died of lung cancer in 2012 at the age of 63. She was also famous from other names as The Queen of Disco, The First Lady of Love, Donna Gaines. He also brought the musical about his late iconic wife called "Summer: The Donna Summer Musical," to life. I knew her and found her to be one of the most likable and fun people ever. Donna Summer was born Donna Adrian Gaines on December 31, 1948, in Boston, Massachusetts. She said, "I actually am, probably in September. On January 5, 1981, she gave birth to their daughter Brooklyn Sudano (who is now an actress, singer and dancer), and on August 11, 1982, she gave birth to their daughter Amanda Sudano (who in 2005 became one half of the musical duo Johnnyswim, alongside Abner Ramirez). 1, giving Summer her first posthumous number-one single, and her sixteenth number-one on the charts. "[72] Lenny Kravitz wrote "Rest in peace Donna, You are a pioneer and you have paved the way for so many of us. The album went Gold in the UK after the song "State of Independence" was re-released there to promote the album. Donna Summer was a pop icon,five-time Grammy winner, and legendary songbird whoscored 42 single hits on Billboard's Hot 100. 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The working partnership would build Summer up to fame across Europe with singles "The Hostage" and "Lady of the Night.". After the release of the On the Radio album, Summer wanted to branch out into other musical styles, which led to tensions between her and Casablanca Records. Make sure the source is set correctly and that CORS support is enabled. ", On the Radio: Greatest Hits Volumes I & II, The Dance Collection: A Compilation of Twelve Inch Singles, Endless Summer: Donna Summer's Greatest Hits, Can't We Just Sit Down (And Talk It Over), Dream-A-Lot's Theme (I Will Live for Love), American Music Award for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist, American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist, ABC Television Center in Los Angeles (Stage 54 or Stage 55), The Dick Clark Saturday Night Beech-Nut Show, List of acts who appeared on American Bandstand, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Donna_Summer&oldid=1140892858, Grammy Award winners for dance and electronic music, Articles with dead external links from December 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Pages containing links to subscription-only content, Articles with dead external links from August 2021, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox musical artist with associated acts, Articles with unsourced statements from June 2019, Articles with unsourced statements from July 2022, Articles lacking reliable references from April 2021, Articles needing additional references from June 2014, All articles needing additional references, Turner Classic Movies person ID same as Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 22 February 2023, at 08:13. Did Donna Summer's children's choice of career come as a surprise? Likewise, as a family, she shared the net worth of her mother who is a famous singer. During the 1990s, Donna Summer focused on her family. Summer said, "I wanted this album to have a lot of different directions on it. Summer received the Walk of Fame's 1,952nd staron the Hollywood Walk of Fame in March 1992. and more. [emailprotected]. In doing so, youre agreeing to the below guidelines. Within three years, she moved to Vienna, Austria, and joined the Vienna Volksoper. Donna Watts Johnson. [10] In December 2016, Billboard ranked her sixth on its list of the "Greatest of All Time Top Dance Club Artists". She said that her "thoughts and prayers are with her family always. 1 hit on the Hot 100 chart. . Lisa Sheirer, Amanda Sudano of JOHNNYSWIM. The ceremony took place at The Roland Park Second Presbyterian Church in Baltimore, Maryland. In 1998, Summer received the first Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording, after a remixed version of her 1992 collaboration with Giorgio Moroder, "Carry On", was released in 1997. She received a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. 1 on the US Billboard Dance Chart. Within three years, she moved to Vienna, Austria, and joined the Vienna Volksoper. That was a mistake, because only a few tracks had been finished, and most of them were in demo phase. While working as a model part-time and backing singer in Munich, Summer met producer Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte during a recording session for Three Dog Night at Musicland Studios. Summer was born LaDonna Adrian Gaines, one of seven children in a Boston working-class family with "deep spiritual roots," as she wrote in her 2003 memoir, Ordinary Girl. In 1996, Summer recorded a duet with Bruce Roberts, "Whenever There Is Love", which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Daylight. Her widower, musician Bruce Sudano, will serve as an executive producer on the documentary. She was cast as Aunt Oona. [5] There, she met music producers Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, and they went on to record influential disco hits together such as "Love to Love You Baby" and "I Feel Love", marking Summer's breakthrough into international music markets. Summer's youngest daughters Brooklyn, 31 and Amanda, 28 were born to her second and latest husband, singer/songwriter Bruce Sudano. Lenny". 1 on the US dance charts.[17]. Unbeknownst to all but her immediate family, she spent the last years of her life battling lung cancer, which claimed her in 2012, at age 63. They welcomed their firstborn, Joaquin, in February 2015. It would be released years later in 1996, under the title I'm a Rainbow. Dick Clark and Steven Seagal joined family and fans to celebrate the milestone. Image Source: Youtube / LaChanze - Topic. [39], On September 15, 2010, Summer appeared as a guest celebrity, singing alongside contestant Prince Poppycock, on the television show America's Got Talent. 75. [77] A few days after her death, her album sales increased by 3,277%, according to Nielsen SoundScan. "Unconditional Love", which featured the British group Musical Youth, and "Love Has a Mind of Its Own" did not crack the top 40. The trio forged a working partnership, and Donna was signed to their Oasis label in 1974. KMJQ Featured Video. object has role. Mimi Sommer was born Natalie Pia Melanie Sommer on 16th February 1973 to her parents, Donna Summer and Helmuth Sommer in Munich, Germany. [48] A couple of years later, she filed a lawsuit against New York magazine when it printed an old story about the rumors as fact, just as she was about to release her album Mistaken Identity in 1991. All the flavors scream spring and summer, but enjoy this cake year around! Nicknamed the Queen of Disco, she was a major figure of the genre's popularity as her songs echoed throughout nightclubs during the mid 1970s to early 1980s earning her multiple Grammy Awards and nominations. In 1994, she also contributed to the Tribute to Edith Piaf album, singing "La Vie En Rose". [63][64], Singers and music industry professionals around the world reacted to Summer's death. Donna Summer had become a superstar. 1 on Billboard's album chart: Live and More, Bad Girls and On the Radio: Greatest Hits Volumes I & II. 20). Anyone growing up in the disco era is familiar with her music, but not many know her story behind the headlines. She provided backing vocals for producer-keyboardist Veit Marvos on his Ariola Records release Nice to See You, credited as "Gayn Pierre". Summer married Sudano in 1980. The couple had seven children, including the Grammy-winning singer. After getting help, she reconnected with her faith. [80] Her last studio album, 2008's Crayons, spun off three No. [5] She attended Boston's Jeremiah E. Burke High School where she performed in school musicals and was considered popular. Her first six years were spent in the Mission Hill projects. She claimed a top-40 hit every year between 1976 and 1984, and from her first top-ten hit in 1976, to the end of 1982, she had 12 top-ten hits (10 were top-five hits), more than any other act during that time period. [42], On December 11, 2012, after four prior nominations, Summer was posthumously announced to be one of the 2013 inductees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame,[43] and was inducted on April 18, 2013, at Los Angeles' Nokia Theater. Both, "I'm a Rainbow" and "Don't Cry for Me Argentina" would be on her 1993 anthology album. [82], In 2018, Summer: The Donna Summer Musical, a biographical musical featuring Summer's songs, began performances on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre,[83] following a 2017 world premiere at the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego. I Remember Yesterday by Donna Summer from I Remember Yesterday . Summer continued to create hit songs early in the 21st century. "Queen of Disco" Donna Summer died today at the way-too-young age of 63 after losing a battle with cancer. She was American by nationality. Donna Summer was born LaDonna Adrian Gaines in Boston, Massachusetts on December 13, 1948. . There are a few guidelines and Artists donated royalties of certain songs, some in perpetuity, to benefit the cause. 148. "The Wanderer" reached #3 on the Hot 100. The Wanderer was rushed to market; the producers of the album wanted more production time. Her road to fame was a tragic one, however. Reported! You may also like: Freddie Mercury: The life story you may not know. [43], A remix album titled Love to Love You Donna, containing new remixes of some of Summer's classics, was released in October 2013. "We were put to work," says Sudano, who is co-starring in NBC's new action series . [70] Liza Minnelli said, "She was a queen, The Queen Of Disco, and we will be dancing to her music forever." She was born May 29, 1938. Please use one of the templates derivative or extract., Donna Summer Bruce Sudano Giorgio Moroder Beverly Hills, CC BY-SA 3.0. Mimi is 42 years old (born 2/16/73) and her father is Donna . 1 on Billboard's R&B chart for three weeks. Please fill in your e-mail so we can share with you our top stories. Several hundred of Donna Summer's closest friends and family crowded into a Nashville, Tennessee, church Wednesday afternoon to say goodbye to the queen of disco, who died of lung cancer last . Casablanca wanted her to continue to record disco only. She still toured the country but wasn't working at the break-neck pace she was in the 70s and 80s. By early 1976, "Love to Love You Baby" had reached No. Here Are 7 Compelling Facts About Mimi Sommer. [11], LaDonna Adrian Gaines was born on December 31, 1948, in Boston, Massachusetts, to Andrew and Mary Gaines, and was third of seven children. She was 63 years old. Mimi Sommer Dohler (pictured below) is Donna's eldest child. Text by Meghan Smith and Mark Herz. She became a cultural icon and her prominence on the dance charts, for which she was referred to as the Queen of Disco, made her not just one of the defining voices of that era, but also an influence on pop artists from Madonna to Beyonc. . 0% Complete. [30] The album All Systems Go, did not achieve Gold status and became her lowest charting studio album in the US to date. Donna Summer in 1978, the year of her first US chart-topping single and her film acting debut - as a disco singer. The late singer had Mimi, 39 with her ex-husband and German actor Helmut Sommer. While living in Nashville, Tennesse, where her family moved after living in Thousand Oaks, California, she met musician and songwriter Abner Ramirez. Influenced by the counterculture of the 1960s, Summer became the lead singer of a psychedelic rock band named Crow and . Summer's first Geffen album, The Wanderer, featured an eclectic mixture of sounds, bringing elements of rock, rockabilly, new wave, and gospel music. Summer had a top 40 hit each year for eight consecutive years. Her daughter Savanna is a model and artist who recently performed live art at Citizen 615 clothing studio in Franklin, Tennesse. Numerous artists consider Summer a major influence on their music, with the likes of Pet Shop Boys, Lizzo, Texas, Beyonc, and Kylie Minogue all sampling her songs. "[69][75], Summer was honored at the 2012 Billboard Music Awards ceremony. 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