Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip: Kathy Sledge

Sunday Diva/Three From The Hip:

Kathy Sledge

In my own personal big gay church, there is a wing festooned with disco balls, strobes and a pulsing dancefloor. Here reign the Divas of the Dancefloor; a rare cultural phenomena somewhat confined to the clubs. Their siren calls beckon you forth, bewitching you with soulful sounds and inspirational words, causing your body to gyrate as if taken by a spirit. Theirs is the world of house - and by house, I mean, these ladies know how to take you to church, son. With their voices we soar and are liberated from gravity's and reality's pull.

One such diva?

Kathy Sledge

Being part of a successful sister act can be a tricky thing. 

Especially when you choose to break ranks. 

With her sisters: Debbie, Joni and Kim, our diva created some of the most quintessential dance hits of the 70's and 80's. The lead voice on the group’s most biggest songs: We Are Family, He's The Greatest Dancer and Thinking Of You.

Hailing from Philadelphia the sisters came from a gifted, talented family. Their mother was an actress and their father was a tap dancer who appeared on Broadway. They learned to sing, thanks to their grandmother, Viola Williams, who was an opera singer and a civil rights activist.  

The sisters would go on to great fame and fortune of their own. 

But Kathy felt the need to strike out on her own, and left the fold in 1989, leaving her sisters to carry on as Sister Sledge. And while sisters will always be sisters, business is business. 

Stripped of the ability to claim her past, our diva carved out a name for herself, delivering one floor stomper after another.  Her distinctive, raspy vocals could be heard wherever a mirror ball may hang. 

But everything old becomes new again and life has a way of circling back. We Are Family became an unofficial anthem during the pandemic. Kathy was joined by Nile Rodger, himself, to sing it at Joe Biden's 2021 Presidential Inauguration.

The gospel according to her?

Well, her are three from the hip, dropping from her lips.

The topic? Reclaiming Part Of Her Identity

"Finally, because of some of the madness with the sisters, I was allowed to use the brand. It was crazy. For like the past 20 years, as a corporation, they voted that I was the only sister that couldn’t say I was 'of' Sister Sledge or 'from' Sister Sledge."

"Now what I’m trying to do is clear up, because it’s very nebulous out there. I would never fight with my sisters. I want that to be known. Yes, I have for lack of better words, fought to be able to sing. And I feel like what’s meant for you is meant for you."

"If you go to (the Sister Sledge) website, you see (a photo of) three faces you don’t know, which is basically Debbie and her family. What we are really trying to do is, if a 14-year-old wanted to do a book report or essay on Sister Sledge you should be able to pull up the authentic sisters. So we’re working on that. And Kim and I get along fine."

"Kim (sister) actually is my neighbor. We get along - we go and get coffee. She knocked on my door right before the pandemic and she said, quote unquote, ‘I’m sorry we’ve been so mean to you.' And she voted back my rights. When I say my rights, it gave me the right in the company to vote, because they had taken that away from me."

"It was serendipitous for me, because I started learning how to produce festivals and how to perform in such a way that singing all these hits and using the brand value as well now has just ben amazing. So this past summer, for the first time I started, I guess you could say, just reinventing."

"I’m actually very hyped. What I’ve been doing is staying towards the positive in everything, because I think that you have to love to. It might sound corny but I just concentrate on doing what I love. And I feel like the good things surface to the top."

“We always get asked, ‘Will we do anything together again?’ I feel like people have to understand that we’ve been doing this all of our lives, and it’s very healthy to go to other plateaus.”

Take Me Back To Love - Kathy Sledge

Keep It Moving - Astrofreeks feat. Kathy Sledge

Jump Into The Light - Horse Meat Disco & Kathy Sledge

And one last parting shot...

"So why has disco been so important this year? It’s almost like a repeat of the 40's when we had the huge depression. Coming out of it everyone was ready to just have a good time. It’s definitely people embracing the feel good, if there is such a thing. We’re embracing that feel good feeling. And yes, disco dance music does that. I think that is why."

"It’s not just one generation. That’s what I love about this. I can do a concert and the mum can be out there with her daughter, loving it just as much. I think that we are running towards feeling good. And this music brings it out."

"I’m totally loving it, Trust me, there’s bad music in every genre of music. There’s bad country music and there’s great country, and there’s bad disco and there’s good disco. And what I’m seeing with some of the newer artists is they’re taking it to another level but at the same time they’re keeping the authenticity of what disco/dance music is all about, which to me, honestly, is just uplifting."

"I think music should do that. It should not only make you dance, but it should make you feel good. That’s what I’m seeing with the newer artists, that they get it. And I think when you do that, it becomes timeless."