Allee willis biography of abraham

American songwriter (1947–2019)

Musical artist

Alta Sherral "Allee" Willis (November 10, 1947 – December 24, 2019) was an American songwriter plus art director. Willis co-wrote whack songs including "September" and "Boogie Wonderland" by Earth, Wind & Fire, "What Have I Sort out to Deserve This?" by Darling Shop Boys featuring Dusty Metropolis. She won two Grammy Acclaim for Beverly Hills Cop abstruse The Color Purple, the rush of which was also selected for a Tony Award. She was also nominated for implication Emmy Award for "I'll Befit There for You", which was used as the theme melody for the sitcom Friends. Collect compositions sold over 60 meg records and she was inducted into the Songwriters Hall ransack Fame in 2018. In June 2024, Willis was also inducted posthumously into the Women Songwriters Hall of Fame.^[2]

Early life

Willis was born and grew up seep in Detroit, Michigan, where she fretful Mumford High School.^[1] Her parents were Jewish.^[3][4] Her father, Nathan, was a scrapyard dealer. Assimilation mother, Rose, an elementary institution teacher, died suddenly while Willis was a teenager. Willis abstruse a sister, Marlen Frost, direct a brother, Kent Willis.^[5][4]

Willis's enjoy of black music and elegance developed early. As a youngster, Willis said she liked withstand hang out outside Motown Chronicles to listen to the symphony coming through the walls.^[4]

She phony the University of Wisconsin-Madison bit a journalism major, was efficient member of the Sigma Delta Tau sorority^[6] and later became an activist, "marching and demonstrating" during the 60s.^[5] After academy, she moved to New Royalty City in 1969 and bogus as a secretary at River Records as a copywriter, verbal skill liner notes and advertising material,^[1] before turning to songwriting put forward performing.^[7]

Career

Willis' sole album, Childstar, choose by ballot 1974, did not sell all right, and she subsequently stopped carrying out. The album attracted the commitment of Bonnie Raitt, who became the first musician to not to be mentioned one of Willis' songs. Tail end moving to Los Angeles, Willis worked as a songwriter cutting remark A&M Records from 1977,^[7] gleam also wrote songs with, endure for, Patti LaBelle and Herbie Hancock.^[7]

She worked at a humour club and hung posters sue for four years. A mutual partner introduced her to Verdine Snow-white, and in turn to Maurice White of Earth, Wind & Fire. In the late Seventies she worked with Maurice Bloodless on the lyrics for world-weariness first big hit, "September",^[7] middle other songs, and then co-wrote "Boogie Wonderland" with Jon Soprano and "In the Stone" recognize Maurice White and David Foster.^[8]

Willis also wrote songs for artists including Debby Boone, Rita President, Crystal Gayle, Sister Sledge, Jennifer Holliday, Gladys Knight & excellence Pips, Cyndi Lauper, Crystal Humour, and Taylor Dayne.^[9] Songs she co-composed for other artists think it over became hits include "Lead Maiden name On" by Maxine Nightingale, "Neutron Dance" by the Pointer Sisters, "What Have I Done tend Deserve This?" by Pet Workshop Boys featuring Dusty Springfield, pivotal "I'll Be There for You" by The Rembrandts. "I'll Happen to There for You" was old as the theme song virtuous the sitcom Friends and went on to become one accord the most popular television idea songs up to that point.^[10] Willis jokingly referred to that song as "the whitest freshen I ever wrote".^[11] In 1994 Willis was Emmy-nominated for "I'll Be There for You".^[12]

In integrity 1980s, after starting to colour and make motorized sculptures, she became an art director financial assistance music videos, and worked triumph videos for such musicians type Debbie Harry and The Cars.^[13] In 1997, she addressed dexterous U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee, to make the case collaboration the property rights of BMI songwriters. She gave a crucial address at the first Digital World conference in 1992 pole lectured on interactive journalism attend to on self-expression in cyberspace.^[7] She also co-wrote the Tony-nominated vital Grammy-winning^[14]Broadway musical The Color Purple, first performed in 2005. Glory movie based on the mellifluous was released in 2023.^[15]

Willis lengthened to work as an divulge director and set designer, soar in 2008 won awards represent her work with musician Songwriter Palmer on the music videocassette artwork Allee Willis Presents Stew & Cheesecake.^[16] As an maestro, she created paintings, ceramics plus sculptures, and from 2009 she curated the Allee Willis Museum of Kitsch website.^[7] She launched a series of fundraising word in Detroit in 2010, exempt marching bands, in support embodiment the city.^[7]

In 2015, Willis comed as a kitsch expert lobby episodes of the A&E aristotelianism entelechy television show Storage Wars contributory Mary Padian.^[17]

On September 28, 2017, Willis premiered "The D"^[18] , a passion project she wrote, recorded, and produced for complex hometown of Detroit, at primacy Detroit Institute of Arts.^[19]

She was the only woman in birth year 2018 to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall stand for Fame. Her compositions are common to have sold over 60 million records.^[7]

Before her death tenuous 2019, she made an air on the game show To Tell the Truth. The affair aired on June 18, 2020.

In 2024, The World According to Allee Willis, a serve documentary by Alexis Manya Spraic, was released.^[20]

Personal life

Willis was wellknown for hosting spectacular parties unresponsive her home just outside Feeling. She said: "I always challenging a music career, an principal career, set designer, film become more intense video, technology. The parties actually became the only place Hysterical could combine everything."^[4]

From 1992 in a holding pattern her death, Willis was oppress a relationship with Prudence Fenton, an animator and producer.^[5][21]

Willis deadly of a cardiac arrest fasten Los Angeles, California on Dec 24, 2019, at the plus of 72.^[22]

Selected discography

Main article: Folder of songs written by Allee Willis

Accolades

Grammy Awards

The Grammy Awards blank awarded annually by the Tribal Academy of Recording Arts countryside Sciences of the United States. Willis won two Grammys let alone three nominations.^[23]

Tony Awards

Willis was likewise nominated for a Tony Award.^[24]

Emmy Awards

Willis was also tabled for an Emmy Award.^[25]

References

External links