NEW YORK: Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer behind the classic “Killing Me Softly With His Song” and one of the most recognisable voices of the 1970s, died Monday at age 88.

Flack’s publicist announced her death without citing a cause. The influential pop and R&B star in recent years had lost her ability to sing because of ALS, known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which she was diagnosed with in 2022.

“She died peacefully surrounded by her family,” the statement from the publicist said. The classically trained musician with a tender but confident voice produced a number of early classics of rhythm and blues that she frequently described as “scientific soul,” timeless works that blended meticulous practice with impeccable taste.

Her exceptional talent was key to the “quiet storm” radio form of smooth, sensuous slow jams that popularised R&B and influenced its later aesthetics.

“I’ve been told I sound like Nina Simone, Nancy Wilson, Odetta, Barbra Streisand, Dionne Warwick, even Mahalia Jackson,” Flack said in 1970 in The New York Times.

“If everybody said I sounded like one person, I’d worry. But when they say I sound like them all, I know I’ve got my own style.” Jennifer Hudson hailed Flack as “one of the great soul singers of all time,” and Roots drummer Questlove wrote “Thank You Robert Flack. Rest in Melody.

Published in Dawn, February 26th, 2025