By Deardra Shuler
Lehman
Center for the Performing Arts will be experiencing the ultimate dance party on
Saturday, April 21st at 8:00p.m., when singer Gloria Gaynor performs
at the venue before a full orchestra.
She will also be sharing the stage with The Hit Men and Colonel Abrams.
Part
of the disco dance era, Gloria was born in Newark, NJ, and only 19 when she was
signed to Columbia Records by Clive Davis.
She recorded the single “Honey Bee” for Columbia Records in 1975. Later she recorded her hit song, “I Will
Survive” in 1978. Gloria has proven she
has the stuff to survive in an industry that can be pretty tough sometimes. Little did she realize when she initially recorded
“I Will Survive,” she would garner a Grammy, the song would become the greatest
disco anthem of all time and be inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame. “I Will Survive” has sold over 14 million copies
and has been translated into over 20 languages.
Then she recorded the first disco record to be played on AM radio, her
hit “Never Can Say Good-bye” for
MGM. The album went gold. Hit albums Experience Gloria Gaynor,
and I've Got You (Under My Skin) followed.
I recorded “I Will Survive,” while wearing a back
brace. While performing at the Beacon
Theatre I fell backwards over a monitor while doing a skit with my background
singers. I jumped up, finished the show,
went out to breakfast, went home and went to bed and when I woke up, I was
paralyzed from the waist down. I ended
up getting surgery on my back. That was
scary. The surgery was in March and I
came out of the hospital in July. I then
recorded “I Will Survive” in October, but I was wearing a back brace when I
did” said the enduring singer. “When I first read the lyrics to “I Will
Survive,” I saw it as timeless lyrics. The song is now over 35 years old. It
contains the type of lyrics that everyone can relate to. The song was about unrequited love. However, I saw it as something related to
survival. I thought I would never
survive my mother’s death, being in a back brace and getting surgery on my
spine. Yet, I survived,” said Gloria.
She toured to Italy and Croatia as part of a Christmas symphony
tour, returning to ring in the New Year with a concert in Las Vegas. Her
upcoming gospel CD is entitled “He Gave Me Life (I Will Survive).” Later
this year, Gloria plans to release a single entitled “All The Man That I Need.”
Gloria appeared in Smokey Joe’s Café on Broadway. She appeared on “Don’t Forget the Lyrics,” “Donnie
and Marie,” “The Wayan Brothers,” “The
70s Show” and “Ally McBeal” on television.
“I am looking forward to going on “Who Do You Think You Are?” This show searches out your ancestry. I am
trying to arrange my schedule around it so I can go on. I know I have Native American Blackfoot
Indian and Jamaican ancestry, so I am really looking forward to the show to see
what else may be in my origins,” said the singer who also wrote a book called
“I Will Survive.”
Gloria holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology and plans
to eventually open a nurturing recreation center for teenage parents in her
hometown of Newark, NJ. “I wanted to open up a nurturing recreation center to
work with teenage parents and their families here in America. I want to partner with other learning
organizations to help the children continue their education. I want them to learn to follow their passions
so they can earn money while supporting themselves while being happy doing it,”
explained Gaynor.
“I used to love to dance when younger and wore
these 3” heels while doing deep bends as part of a dance. Now I have knee problems and back problems
and other things I have had to overcome.
The song “I Will Survive” has been important as I have overcome
challenges. I have survived the death of
my four brothers, my mother’s death, a divorce, and illness, so I have survived
and “I will survive,” claims the enduring performer who is quite the
humanitarian.
Gaynor
lends her support to numerous charities including the Susan G. Comen Breast
Cancer Foundation (North Jersey Affiliate), the Hellenic Times Foundation, The
Revlon Walk For Women and the Christian Broadcasting Network. Ms. Gaynor is a member of the United Cerebral
Palsy Hudson County Board of Directors.
She financially supports Save the Children, sponsors four children
through the Christian Children's Fund, is a Chair holder for the New Jersey
Crime Victims' Law Center, was 2008 Honorary Chair for the New York Diabetes
Association and supports Denise Rich's Angel Ball, a foundation for Melanoma
research. In addition to these charities, Gloria also supports Bailey House New
York Restoration Project, WomensLaw.org, Miami Children’s Hospital and the
National Network to End Domestic Violence.
“God has been good to me and I believe I
should share my blessings. Therefore, I sponsor 4 Ethiopian children, children
who have lived in poverty due to the drought there. Americans could not survive
some of the conditions others experience around the world. We are so lucky,”
remarked the generous performer.
For tickets to Gloria Gaynor’s show at Lehman Center for
the Performing Arts, located at 250 Bedford Park Boulevard West, in the Bronx,
fans can call the Lehman Center Box Office at 718.960.8833 and online at www.LehmanCenter.org
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