Williams, Deniece (1951–)
Williams, Deniece (1951–)
African-American singer. Born June 3, 1951, in Gary, Indiana.
As young girl, sang in gospel choirs, and later was volunteer hospital nurse; auditioned for Stevie Wonder and joined his group, Wonderlove, later touring with him; released 1st solo album, This Is Niecy (1976), which included hit, "Free"; had #1 pop and R&B hit with "Too Much, Too Little, Too Late" (1978); released hit cover of Royalettes song, "It's Gonna take a Miracle" (1982); released Let's Hear It for the Boy (1984), whose title track went to #1 in pop and R&B charts, and was used in film, Footloose (1984); began to record gospel music, and won 2 Grammys for So Glad I Know (1986); other albums include Water Under the Bridge (1987), Love Solves It All (1996), and This Is My Song (1998), which won a Grammy; published children's book, Lullabies to Dreamland (1991).