Patricia Louise Holte, professionally known as Patti LaBelle (born May 24, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. First starting out her career as front woman of the group Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles (later just known as Labelle), she embarked onto a successful solo career in 1976. She scored a string of hits throughout The '80s. She is also an actress and voice actress, first appearing in A Soldier's Story and starring in her own sitcom Out All Night.
She's also a businesswoman with a diabetic-friendly lifestyle brand in the vein of Martha Stewart, including a line of sweet potatoes pie that sold out in 2015 after a viral YouTube video.
Discography
With Labelle
- Sleigh Bells, Jingle Bells, and Bluebelles (1963)
- Over the Rainbow (1966)
- Dreamer (1967)
- Labelle (1971)
- Gonna Take a Miracle (with Laurie Nyro) (1971)
- Moon Shadow (1972)
- Pressure Cookin' (1973)
- Nightbirds (1974)
- Phoenix (1975)
- Chameleon (1976)
- Back to Now (2008)
Solo Albums
- Patti LaBelle (1977)
- Tasty (1978)
- It's Alright with Me (1979)
- Released (1980)
- The Spirit's in It (1981)
- I'm in Love Again (1983)
- Patti (1985)
- Winner in You (1986)
- Be Yourself (1989)
- This Christmas (1990)
- Burnin' (1991)
- Gems (1994)
- Flame (1997)
- When a Woman Loves (2000)
- Timeless Journey (2004)
- Classic Moments (2005)
- The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle (2006)
- Miss Patti's Christmas (2007)
- Bel Hommage (2017)
Selected Filmography
Film
- A Soldier's Story (1984) - Big Mary
- Licence to Kill (1989) - "If You Asked Me To" is used in the end credits
- Idlewild (2006) - The Real Angel Davenport
- Semi-Pro (2008) - Mrs. Moon
Television
- A Different World (1990–93) - Adele Wayne, 8 episodes
- Out All Night (1992) - Chelsea Paige, main role
- Living It Up With Patti LaBelle (2003) - Host, also executive producer
- American Horror Story: Freak Show (2014) - Dora, 4 episodes
- Dancing with the Stars (2015) - Herself/Contestant, Season 20
- Patti LaBelle's Place (2015) - Herself/Host, Cooking Channel series
- Daytime Divas (2017) - Gloria Thomas 3 episodes
- Lee Daniels Star (2018) - Christine Brown, recurring role
- Greenleaf (2018) - Maxine Patterson, 5 episodes
- The Masked Singer (2019) - Herself
- Fraggle Rock: Back to the Rock - The Merggle Queen
Tropes
- Break Up Song: "On My Own", a duet with Michael McDonald, is about a relationship falling apart and picking up the pieces.
- Genre Shift: Was initially a Rock and Roll/Funk artist with Labelle, she transitioned to more of an R&B artist.
- Melismatic Vocals: Like a true R&B diva, her vocals can be this at times.
- No Indoor Voice: Also like a true R&B diva.
- Oblivious to Love: The subject of "If You Only Knew" doesn't know that Patti is in love with him.
- Protest Song: Her 1986 hit "Oh, People," is a plea for peace, brotherhood and equality.
