Reaction to the death of Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole

Natalie Cole began her career as an R&B singer and had hits that included the Grammy-winning song, “This Will Be”. Her last album was released in 2013 with “Natalie Cole en Espanol”.

Cole’s death was confirmed by publicist Maureen O’Connor.

The statement was signed by Cole’s only child, Robert Yancey, and her twin sisters, Timolin and Casey Cole.

“A voice from heaven has been called home”, added Cher in a tweet.

COLE: (Singing)…Oh lord, that you mean so much to me. Their house, in Los Angeles’ upscale Hancock Park neighborhood, was a regular spot for her parents’ colleagues.

“I don’t remember what I sounded like, I was too much in awe of her”, she said in her lengthy Instagram tribute. He was also a minister who brought religion into Cole’s life.

Cole’s top-selling album was 1991’s Unforgettable…With Love, on which she sang songs her father had recorded. Natalie was an exceptional jazz singer and it was an honor to have recorded and performed with her on several occasions. Her father, Nat King Cole, is my favorite artist of all time.

Born Feb. 6, 1950, in Los Angeles, Cole had music in her genes.

Her career was inextricably linked to that of her father. Natalie had a top 40 hit in the United Kingdom with This Will Be in 1975, before enjoying a renaissance in the charts from the late 1980s. Her first win was for Best New Artist in 1971.

A huge hit, the disc contained the soulful, joyful smash “This Will Be”.

Cole’s health and habits had been the subject of numerous headlines over the years.

“I’m an ex-drug addict and I don’t take that kind of stuff lightly”, Cole explained at the 2009 Grammy Awards. Her mother even filed for conservatorship in 1982. And I think it was about the trials and tribulations that she was going through at the time.

Just months later, she was itching to get back onstage.

The daughter of Nat King Cole was a legend in her own right for the scope of her talent, the breadth of her artistry, the fortitude of her spirit.

She criticized the Recording Academy for giving five Grammys to drug user Amy Winehouse in 2008.

What is your fondest memory of Natalie Cole’s life and/or career? Her 1975 debut album, “Inseparable“, made her an instant sensation.

But she was happiest touring and performing live. “God bless them”, Cole told AARP Magazine in 2009.

She was 65 years old. But she came through her father, and of course was connected to him – met so many great long-standing figures in popular music through him. She also appeared as a judge on “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and guested on some “Real Housewives” programs. Cole received dialysis three times a week, but continued to perform. Finally, in 2001 Cole married another religious man, Kenneth Dupree, that relationship ended in divorce in 2004.