Feminist icon Helen Reddy, the voice of empowerment anthem 'I Am Woman,' dies at 78
Helen Reddy, the iconic Australian singer best known for her empowerment anthem "I Am Woman," has died at age 78.
Reddy's family confirmed to USA TODAY in a statement that she died Tuesday afternoon in Los Angeles.
"It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Helen Reddy," wrote the singer's children, Traci Donat and Jordan Sommers. "She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and a truly formidable woman. Our hearts are broken. But we take comfort in the knowledge that her voice will live on forever."
Before Reddy wrote her famous lyrics, "I am strong, I am invincible, I am woman," she had become fed up with the sexism she encountered in her career.
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Reddy, born in 1941 in Melbourne, Australia, was a young single mother when she moved to New York after winning a talent contest on the "Bandstand" show in Sydney. But once in the U.S., she learned that the record audition she was promised didn't lead to a contract.
The singer eventually signed with Capitol Records and moved to Los Angeles with her new husband and manager Jeff Wald. Starting in 1971, she launched a decade-long string of top 40 hits, including “I Don’t Know How to Love Him” from “Jesus Christ Superstar,” “Ain’t No Way to Treat a Lady,” “Delta Dawn,” “Angie Baby” and “You and Me Against the World.”
In 1973, Reddy won the best female pop vocal performance Grammy for "I Am Woman." Her memorable acceptance speech included thank yous for Wald, Capitol Records and "God, because she makes everything possible.”
Even today, the lyrics of her Grammy-winning song resonate. The iconic statement "I am woman, hear me roar" is written on march signs and has inspired pop hits like Katy Perry's "Roar." In 1972, the song was the soundtrack of the women's liberation movement.
"I Am Woman" topped the Billboard Hot 100 the same year that Shirley Chisolm ran for president and the Equal Rights Amendment passed Congress (though it fell short of ratification by the states).
The story behind groundbreaking song is told in the recent biopic about Reddy of the same name, "I Am Woman," directed by Unjoo Moon and starring Australian actress Tilda Cobham-Hervey as the singer.
Moon, who has had a seven-year friendship with Reddy, said in a statement shared with USA TODAY, "I will forever be grateful to Helen for teaching me so much about being an artist, a woman and a mother. She paved the way for so many and the lyrics that she wrote for 'I Am Woman' changed my life forever like they have done for so many other people and will continue to do for generations to come."
After Reddy retired from performing, she went on to get a degree in hypnotherapy and genealogy. In her later years, Reddy was residing in an assisted living facility and was dealing with "some health and memory issues," her daughter told USA TODAY in a statement ahead of the release of the "I Am Woman" movie.
Moon says that Reddy saw the movie about her life – she watched it through tears – and always had "this great energy” when she had visitors, telling stories and listening to music.
Even in recent years, Reddy felt the modern impact of her seminal song.
Moon sat with the singer in the audience at the Hollywood Bowl in 2017 when the band Pink Martini introduced Reddy and sang a cover of "I Am Woman."
"She got this amazing standing ovation. People were running up to our box and saying to her how much they loved her, how much the music has meant,” says Moon. "She loved it."
Contributing: The Associated Press
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Helen Reddy dies: 'I Am Woman' singer and beloved feminist icon was 78
