American actress, entrepreneur, novelist, composer, and singer Gladys Knight is well known for her acting and singing talents. Aside from that, she has won seven Grammys. In addition to her given name, Gladys Knight also goes by Maria. Also, her group, The Pips, had some very successful singles.
She has been dubbed “Empress of Soul” due to her immense popularity. Both “Midnight Train to Georgia” and “That’s what friends are for” were number-one hits for her. She also has 11 R&B hits that reached #1. She also provided the recording of the Bond theme song for the film License to kill.
Her most famous songs were “Midnight Train to Georgia” and “That’s What Friends Are For,” both of which she recorded with and without the Pips. As a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and the Vocal Group Hall of Fame, Knight has won a total of seven Grammy Awards.
Gladys Knight’s Biography
Gladys Knight is the daughter of mail carrier Merald Woodrow Knight Sr. and housekeeper Sarah Elizabeth Knight, and she was born on May 28, 1944, in Atlanta, Georgia. She has two brothers, Merald “Bubba” Jr. and David, who both predeceased her. Her older sister’s name is Brenda.
Gladys Maria Knight was a church choir singer in the 1940s and 1950s. In 1952, at the tender age of eight, she won a talent competition on the American television show The Original Amateur Hour hosted by Ted Mack.
Gladys Knight’s Net Worth
| Net Worth: | $28 Million |
| Date of Birth: | May 28, 1944 (78 years old) |
| Place of Birth: | Oglethorpe |
| Gender: | Female |
| Height: | 5 ft 3 in (1.613 m) |
| Profession: | Singer-songwriter, Actor, Author, Businessperson, Humanitarian |
| Nationality: | United States of America |
The American singer and songwriter Gladys Knight is worth an estimated $28 million. Knight has other sources of income beyond music. The acting career is one of her sources of income.
With Pipe Dreams in 1976, the vocalist debuted in front of the camera. To portray Maria Wilson, she acted. After her performance, Knight was nominated for a Golden Globe as one of the year’s best new actresses.
He has also appeared in Charlie & Company, I Can Do Bad All by Myself, The First Family, and Hawaii Five-0, among many more. Knight’s name can be found in the credits as a composer and producer as well.
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Gladys Knight Start Her Career
Gladys Knight began her career in 1952, at age eight, when she and her siblings and cousins formed a singing group they named the “Pips.” Before joining Motown Records in the mid-1960s and working with songwriter/producer Norman Whitfield, the Pips’ careers were stagnant.
They moved to Arista’s subsidiary label Buddah Records (from Motown) in 1973. (the group later took Motown to court for unpaid royalties). The Pips’ final Motown record, 1973’s “Neither of Us Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye,” earned their first No. 1 crossover success and won a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance.
In the middle of the 1970s, Gladys Knight and the Pips were at the top of their game thanks to their more approachable sound, their successful album Imagination (1973), and their three gold singles. All Our Love, Knight, and the Pips’ final album featured the Grammy-winning single “Love Overboard,” which was released in 1988.
She was also a regular on the TV show New York Undercover back in 1994, in addition to her musical endeavors. Knight’s acting resume includes roles on JAG and Living Single. She made her acting debut in Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All By Myself in 2009.
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Film
Knight was nominated for a Golden Globe as New Star of the Year Actress for her performance as the lead in Pipe Dreams, which marked her acting debut in 1976. Afterward, in 2003, she played a minor role in the film Hollywood Homicide, which also starred Harrison Ford and Josh Hartnett.
In 2009, Tyler Perry’s I Can Do Bad All by Myself brought Gladys Knight center stage in his cinematic adaptation of the play he had written and based on his own fantasies. She joined the cast of the popular TV show Dancing with the Stars in 2012, competing against stars including Melissa Gilbert, Jaleel White, and Sherri Shepherd.
It wasn’t until two years later that the gospel-influenced studio album Where My Heart Belongs was published. Preparations for Super Bowl LIII’s national anthem began early in 2019 when it was confirmed that Knight will sing it.
Television
The Gladys Knight and the Pips Show, starring Gladys Knight, premiered in 1975 and lasted for only four episodes before being canceled. She also appeared as a guest star on various television shows in the 1980s and 1990s, including Benson, The Jeffersons, A Different World, Living Single, The Jamie Foxx Show, and New York Undercover.
The CBS sitcom Charlie & Co., in which she and comedian Flip Wilson appeared for a single season in 1985, essentially marked her television debut. Then, in April of 2005, she guest starred on an episode of JAG as a singer. In April 2009, Gladys Knight appeared on Tyler Perry’s House of Payne as a special guest star and sang for the audience.
Gladys Knight has made several guest appearances on popular television shows like 30 Rock and Las Vegas. Later in 2012, she started appearing regularly on the NBC comedy series The First Family. In 2012, Knight competed on Season 14 of Dancing with the Stars, paired with professional dancer Tristan MacManus.
When they lost a “dance duel” to Disney Channel star Roshon Fegan and partner Chelsie Hightower on April 24 (the show’s “Motown Week”), they were sent home. Gladys Maria Knight portrayed herself in the 2017 TV musical drama Star.
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Gladys Knight’s Personal Life
James and Kenya Knight were born to Knight and her first husband, Atlanta musician Jimmy Newman. They got a divorce after she married Barry Hankerson for a second time. Although Knight wed motivational speaker and author Les Brown in 1995, their marriage ended in divorce three years later.
It was in 2001 that Knight tied the knot with William McDowell. Together, Knight and William raised seventeen grandkids and ten great-grandchildren. A North Carolina couple, Knight and McDowell call Asheville home.
