Today In Black History: Dr. Roberta Flack
The first artist to win the Grammy Award for Record of the Year in consecutive years.
Issue #814 Today In Black History, Wednesday, February 26, 2025
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Roberta Cleopatra Flack was born on February 10, 1937, in Black Mountain, North Carolina. Her family moved to Richmond, Virginia, before settling in Arlington, Virginia, when she was five years old.
Raised in a musical family, she was introduced to the piano at a young age and quickly showcased her prodigious talent.
During her early teens, Flack excelled at classical piano, finishing second in a statewide competition for Black students aged 13 and earning a full music scholarship to Howard University.
Flack entered Howard at the age of 15, making her one of the youngest students ever to enroll there. She eventually changed her major from piano to voice and became an assistant conductor of the university choir.
While at Howard, Flack pledged the Alpha Chapter of my sorority, Delta Sigma Theta.
She graduated from Howard University at 19 and began graduate studies in music there. Still, the sudden death of her father forced her to take a job teaching music and English at a small, segregated high school in Farmville, North Carolina, for which she was paid $2,800 a year.
Her ability to blend classical influences with soul, jazz, and folk elements marked Roberta Flack's music. Her breakthrough came with the release of her debut album, "First Take," in 1969. The album featured the hit single "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face," which catapulted her to international fame when it was featured in Clint Eastwood's 1971 film "Play Misty for Me."
The song's success earned Flack a Grammy Award for Record of the Year in 1973.
Flack scored her second No. 1 hit in 1973, "Killing Me Softly with His Song.” It was awarded both Record of the Year and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 1974 Grammy Awards.
Flack was a member of the Artist Empowerment Coalition, which advocates for artists' right to control their creative properties. She was also a spokeswoman for the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), appearing in commercials that featured "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face.”
Roberta Flack has also been a passionate advocate for education and music programs, understanding their vital role in nurturing young talent. Her philanthropic efforts have focused on empowering young musicians and providing opportunities for underprivileged students to access music education.
On May 11, 2017, Roberta Flack received an honorary Doctorate in the Arts from Long Island University. She was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2009. In 2021, Flack was one of the first inductees into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame.
In late 2022, it was announced by a spokesperson that Flack had been diagnosed with ALS and had retired from performing due to the disease, making it "impossible to sing.”
Roberta Flack died in Manhattan on February 24, 2025, at the age of 88.
Today In Black History
In 1869, the 15th Amendment, guaranteeing the right to vote for Black men was sent to the states for ratification.
In 1870, WyattOutlaw, the leader of the Alamance County, NC, was lynched by a white mob.
In 1885, the Berlin Conference “gives” Congo to Belgium and Nigeria to the United Kingdom.
1n 1910, Mahatma Gandhi staged a protest against the South Africa Acts which disenfranchised Indians, Coloreds, and Black Africans.
In 1926, Dr. Carter G. Woodson started Negro History Week, which coincided with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass and would later be expanded to Black History Month.
In 1962, the U.S. Supreme Court disallowed race separation on public transportation.
In 1964, heavyweight boxing gold medalist and champion Cassius Clay officially changed his name to Muhammad Ali.
In 1966, Andrew Brimmer became the first African American governor of the Federal Reserve Board after being appointed by President Lyndon B. Johnson.
In 1983, Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” album debuted at #1 and stayed at #1 for 37 weeks.
In 2012, 17-year-old Black teenager Trayvon Martin was murdered by George Zimmerman in Sanford, Florida, as Martin was walking home from a convenience store.
In 2020, Ramona Hood became the first African American CEO of FedEx.
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What a beautiful face and a beautiful human being.