Donna Summer Biography

LaDonna Adrian Gaines, known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer, songwriter and actress. She was particularly famous in the disco era of the late 70s. Among her many awards, she won five Grammys. Overall, the artist sold over 140 million albums, thus becoming one of the history’s highest-selling. With international hits like Hot Stuff and I Feel Love, Donna Summer gained the title of the “Queen of Disco“.

Early Life

Donna Summer was born in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1948. At the age of eight, Donna discovered her passion for music by performing as a vocalist in the church choir. Furthermore, she played in school musicals and later, joined a blues rock band called Crow. After the band split, Donna sang in the rock musical Hair,  the Munich production, where she relocated with her family. After learning German, she participated in several other musicals and toured with a vocal group, Family Tree. In 1968 she released her debut single, a German version of Aquarius from Hair. Additionally, for a while, she worked as a model and backup singer.

Breakthrough

In 1974, Donna signed with Oasis and released her first album, Lady of The Night. It was a local success and spawned two singles, the title track and The Hostage. The latter was banned in Germany because of its controversial political subject. One year later, she made her true breakthrough with the song Love to Love You, which became insanely popular in the US. Therefore, Donna signed with Casablanca Records. By 1976, the hit song had reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 and top 5 in the UK. Later that year, the singer released two albums, A Love Trilogy and Four Seasons of Love, both getting gold certifications.

Highest Peak

In 1977, Donna Summer released the content album I Remember Yesterday, with the iconic single I Feel Love. The album reached Platinum and brought Donna her first American Music Award nomination. Following on that success, she recorded the single Last Dance, which peaked at number 3 on the Hot 100 and topped the Billboard Dance chart. The song was part of the soundtrack of the musical comedy Thank God It’s Friday. Additionally, it marked Donna’s first Grammy award.

The artist’s seventh album, Bad Girls (1979) turned out to be her most memorable. It generated three of her most popular singles, Hot Stuff, Bad Girls and Dim All the Lights. The first two went platinum, as well as the album. Moreover, Donna dominated both the singles and the albums charts. Furthermore, she released a hit duet with Barbra Streisand, No More Tears. During the late 1970s, Summers was definitely on a winning streak.

Photo source: Discogs