Singer Irene Cara, who scored some of the biggest pop hits of the 1980’s, had died aged 63.
Cara first found fame singing the title track to the 1980 movie Fame. In the film she played aspiring singer Coco Hernandez.
Throughout the 1980’s she continued to score hits, often associated with film soundtracks.
She returned to the charts in 1983 with Flashdance…What a Feeling a song she co-wrote alongside producers and writer Giorgio Moroder and Feith Forsey. The song won the Academy Award for Best Song from a Motion Picture, as well as A Grammy, A Golden Globe and an American Music Award.
Her 1983 album What a Feelin’ also included the hits Why Me? and Breakdance.
Cara was later forced to sue her record company for failing to pay her the correct amount of royalties from her record sales. Rumours quickly spread that the singer was difficult to work with, or was affected by drug use, something the singer would later attribute to the record company wanting to make sure nobody else signed her.
It would not be until the early 1990’s the Cara won the case, receiving a court order for a 1.5million payout for lost income. Sadly, the record company declared bankruptcy and the singer was left out of pocket, but she did start receiving money for future sales.
Cara’s death at the aged of 63 was announced by her publicist who said the singer had passed away in her Florida home. No cause of death has been given.
Alongside her pop career Cara also found success as an actress appearing in many films including lending her voice to the animated feature Beauty and the Beast.
While the long-running legal dispute saw Cara record just a few independent releases later in her career, she continued as a singer, often appearing as a backing vocalist for other well-known performers including Vicki Sue Robinson, Lou Reed, Oleta Adams, and Evelyn ‘Champagne’ King.
OIP Staff
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