Enlarge this image In the studio, Betty Davis wrote, arranged and produced her own music – a rarity in her time, especially for a Black woman.Robert Brenner/Courtesy of the artist Robert Brenner/Courtesy of the artist
In the studio, Betty Davis wrote, arranged and produced her own music – a rarity in her time, especially for a Black woman.
Robert Brenner/Courtesy of the artist The incandescent, influential funk musician Betty Davis , who made a string of albums in the mid-1970s that helped to shape stylish, Afrofuturist strains of funk and hip-hop, died on Wednesday in Homestead, Penn., where she had lived since childhood, according to a statement from her record label.Danielle Maggio, a friend of Davis and a producer of Betty Davis: They Say I’m Different , told NPR that she died of cancer after being diagnosed only last week.Davis was 77.
Born Betty Mabry, she attended New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology and later became a model, working with designers and appearing in magazines like Seventeen and Glamour .All the while, she was tinkering with a musical fusion of rock, soul, funk and blues.
Bullseye with Jesse Thorn Betty Davis: The Bullseye Interview Betty Davis Listen · 36:51 36:51 Toggle more options Download Embed Embed < iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/480481341/480481347″ width=”100%” height=”290″ frameborder=”0″ scrolling=”no” title=”NPR embedded audio player”>.
