What is your favorite lyric from “It Takes Two”?
My favorite lyric in the song is, “It takes two, baby, to make a dream come true.”
What has been your favorite memory in regards to your career?
My career spans over 50 years… so to pick a favorite moment is almost impossible. There have been so many memorable moments. One was performing in front of Princess Diana and then Prince Charles. It was thrilling and she was so gracious and beautiful.
Your music incorporates everything from light electronica to progressive rock. How would you describe your sound?
I don’t define my sound. I love singing everything: opera, show tunes, songs from the Great American Songbook, and soulful music. Anything with a great lyric and melody, I’m in.
In the past, you have helped your community by performing for the Santa Barbara Unity Church and for the St. Charles Borromeo Holy Family December Telethon for the homeless. Why do you feel it is so important to give back to the community?
I feel giving to the community, to the world, is my greatest dream. Before I was swept up in the music business, my dream was to be a social worker and join the Peace Corps, and to work at Vista. And then to teach or work with children in foster care. My dream is to blend music and helping others in need, especially children.
Has giving back to the community had an impact on your music?
I think I sing with more emotion and freedom when I’m singing at church and for the community.
Marvin Robinson is featured in “It Takes Two”. How was your experience working together?
I LOVE Marvin Robinson! We’ve known each other since we were kids in The Young Americans. He is such a phenomenal artist and we always promised each other we would sing a duet together someday. And finally, some 50 years later, we made it happen. I was thrilled to sing with him on “It Takes Two!”
What made you choose to cover “It Takes Two”, the classic Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston duet?
I am and have always been a Marvin Gaye fan. I believe he was a prophet through his music with a voice as smooth as silk. I, of course, loved all the duets he did with Tammi Terrell, but “It Takes Two” is also a classic and the only duet he ever did with anyone other than Tammi. And Kim Weston sang beautifully with Marvin.
What is next for you and your career?
Right now, I’m working full-time with Barry Manilow, touring. We just got back from five nights at Radio City Music Hall, and two weeks before that, a dream I had as an eight-year-old little girl, came true: I performed on the stage at Carnegie Hall. Between all that, I perform with Barry at his residency in Las Vegas at the Westgate. So right now, I’m working too hard to think further than tomorrow.