Lonette McKee
Lonette McKee ( born July 22, 1954 in Detroit ) is an American actress and R & B singer- songwriter.
Life and work
Lonette McKee was born as the second daughter of Lonnie McKee, a mason and auto factory worker, and his wife Dorothy McKee in Detroit. She has two sisters, the older one is the actress and dancer Kathrine McKee, the younger is called Carol. Since her father a black man and her mother was a white woman, Lonette McKee was confronted early with racist Reserved. She began as a child with a musical education, played the piano, sang and wrote songs. At the age of seven or eight years, she appeared in the Metro Detroit area. In the late 1960s McKee released several singles, produced by Dennis Coffey and Mike Theodore. With Stop Do not Worry the 14 -year-old scored a regional hit. She left after the ninth grade, the Saint Martin de Porres High School and went with 15 to Los Angeles, where she lived with her sister Kathrine. There she recorded her first album Lonette, which they again realized with COFFEX and Theodore. It appeared in 1974 at Sussex Record, the label of Clarence Avant ( born 1931 ). With Save It Do not Give It Away, the first out-coupled single from the album, she performed in the variety show Soul Train Don Cornelius of. In 1972, she sang as one of the Soul Sisters in Jonathan Winters ' weekly TV show The Wacky World of Jonathan Winters.
In 1978, her second R & B / pop music album Words And Music at Warner Bros. Records, for which she not only sang, but wrote all the songs himself. However, it had no commercial success.
Better known as their music became McKee by appearances in film and television. Her acting career began in 1976 with a starring role in Sparkle, a musical drama from Warner Bros. Pictures, in which Sam O'Steen directed. In their tragic role of drug-addicted Sister McKee had extensive dance and vocal scenes with music by Curtis Mayfield. For the soundtrack to the film but the songs were re-recorded with Aretha Franklin. Since McKee performed regularly in American films, some with vocals, such as the Cotton Club, where she recited the song Ill Wind. Multiple they played in films by Spike Lee, for example, in Jungle Fever and Malcolm X. She also had guest roles in various television series.
The People magazine counted McKee 1995 The 50 Most Beautiful People, the 50 most beautiful people in the world.
1998 and 1999, McKee was nominated for her performance in As the World Turns and To Dance with Olivia for an Image Award. In 2003 he was nominated for a Black Reel Award for Best Supporting Actress category for her performance in the film Lift.
In addition to her film career, McKee took occasional theater roles. She debuted in 1981 in the musical The First. For her performance in Show Boat 1983 she was a Tony Award in 1995 and nominated for a Drama Desk Award. In 1986, she played Billie Holiday in the play Lady Day at Emerson 's Bar and Grill.
From 1983 to 1990 McKee was married to Leo Compton, a consultant to the New York City Youth Bureau, whom she had met during her Show Boat Tour in San Francisco, where he pursued a part-time job as a bouncer.
Published in 1992, McKee their third album, Natural Love in Spike Lee's 40 Acres And A Mule label. It was recorded in New York, and Woodland Hills and contains music of the directions of R & B, pop, rock and hip hop. Seven of the songs were written by McKee, three from her partner Bryant McNeil.
2010 produced McKee, the film directing at The New School in New York City has studied that film drama Dream Street. She also directed, wrote the screenplay and composed the music.