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The Queen of Soul talks about giving Detroit a little respect and answers 10 questions.

The creation of producer/label-head Dick Griffey and Leon Sylvers, this Los Angeles band did light funk and clever dance-pop numbers in the late '70s and '80s.  Bassist Kevin Spencer and vocalists Nidra Beard and Linda Carriere comprised the group. They got off to a fast start with the single "I Don't Want to Be a Freak (But I Can't Help Myself)" from their 1979 LP Your Piece of the Rock.  The next single, "I've Just Begun to Love," was their lone Top Ten R&B hit, peaking at number six in 1980. They continued recording for Solar through the '80s but never registered any other major records.  Leon Sylvers joined them in 1981, but his presence didn't rectify the situation. They remained on Solar until 1988.

Two-time Grammy winner James Ingram, whose signature timbre instantly evokes the classic R&B sound of the 1980s, has died. He was 66. Ingram's passing was announced on Twitter by the actress Debbie Allen. "I have lost my dearest friend and creative partner James Ingram to the Celestial Choir," she  wrote . "He will always be cherished, loved and remembered for his genius, his love of family and his humanity. I am blessed to have been so close." When he was 18, Ingram joined a band called Revelation Funk and tried to make it in Los Angeles, the  Chicago Tribune  reported  in a 2012 profile. Comparing himself to his bandmates, Ingram underestimated his own vocal abilities. "I knew I couldn't sing," he said. "I wasn't trying. I was just doing background." After the band broke up, Ingram stayed in L.A. and got great backup gigs, working with Ray Charles and Marvin Gaye. He would sing and write demos at a studio on Sunset...

Photo by: WireImage Madonna opened her heart and expressed herself about Aretha Franklin at the 2018 MTV Video Music Awards on Monday night — but was promptly slammed for what turned into an egocentric tribute. The Material Girl, clad in flowing black with flourishes of African jewelry and spiky headgear, gave the send-off to the late Queen of Soul before presenting the video of the year award to Camila Cabello. She rambled on about how Franklin, who died Thursday of pancreatic cancer at age 76, helped her launch her own career, according to People. “Aretha Louise Franklin changed the course of my life. I left Detroit when I was 18, $35 in my pocket. My dream was to make it as a professional dancer. After years of struggling and being broke, I decided to go to auditions for musical theater,” Madge said. The 60-year-old continued discussing her early years as a struggling artist. “I had no training or dreams of ever becoming a singer but I went for it. I got cut and rejected f...