Anita Pointer, a longtime member of the Grammy-winning group the Pointer Sisters, passed away on Saturday after a battle with cancer. She was 74.
“While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada and her sisters June & Bonnie and at peace,” Pointer’s family said in a statement. “She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us. … Heaven is a more loving beautiful place with Anita there.”
The singer’s rep told TMZ that Pointer died after a “somewhat lengthy and heroic battle with cancer.”
Anita was the second oldest of four sisters who initially started the group as a duo in 1969. The Pointer Sisters released their self-titled debut album in 1973, breaking into the mainstream with their first hit single “Yes We Can,” which peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 12 on the Hot Soul Songs chart. In 1974, the group won the Grammy Award for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group with its single “Fairytale.”
Over the next decade, the Pointer Sisters notched seven Top 10 singles on the Hot 100: 1978’s “Fire” (No. 2), 1980’s “He’s So Shy” (No. 3), 1981’s “Slow Hand” (No. 2), 1984’s “Automatic” (No. 5), 1984’s “Jump (For My Love)” (No. 3), 1984’s “I’m So Excited” (No. 9), and 1984’s “Neutron Dance” (No. 9).
