Natalie Cole

Cole grew up with an older adopted sister, Carole "Cookie" Cole (1944–2009), her mother Maria's younger sister's daughter, adopted brother Nat "Kelly" Cole (1959–1995), and younger twin sisters Timolin and Casey (born 1961).

Through her mother, Cole was a grandniece of educator Charlotte Hawkins Brown.

Her paternal uncle Freddy Cole was a singer and pianist with numerous albums and awards.

Natalie Maria Cole (February 6, 1950 – December 31, 2015) was an American singer, songwriter, and actress.

She was the daughter of singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole.

Cole sang on her father's 1960 Christmas album The Magic of Christmas and later started performing at age 11.

She rose to prominence in the mid-1970s, with the release of her debut album Inseparable (1975), along with the song "This Will Be (An Everlasting Love)", and the album's title track.

Cole enrolled in Northfield School for Girls, an elite New England preparatory school, since 1971 known as Northfield Mount Hermon School after merging with another school, before her father died of lung cancer in February 1965.

Soon afterwards she began having a difficult relationship with her mother.

Cole attended The Buckley School, a private school in Sherman Oaks, California, and then enrolled in the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

She transferred briefly to University of Southern California where she pledged the Upsilon chapter of Delta Sigma Theta sorority.

She later transferred back to the University of Massachusetts, where she majored in Child Psychology and minored in German, graduating in 1972.

Cole grew up listening to a variety of music that included Aretha Franklin and Janis Joplin.

After graduation in 1972 she began singing at small clubs with her band, Black Magic.

Clubs initially welcomed her because she was Nat King Cole's daughter, only to be disappointed when she began singing cover versions of R&B and rock songs.

With the assistance of Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy, a songwriting and producing duo, she recorded some songs in a studio in Chicago that was owned by Curtis Mayfield.

Her demo tapes led to a contract with Capitol, resulting in the release of Cole's debut album, Inseparable, which included songs that reminded listeners of Aretha Franklin.

Franklin later contended that songs such as "This Will Be", "I Can't Say No", and others were offered to her while she was recording the album You but she had turned them down.

Released in 1975, the album became an instant success thanks to "This Will Be", which became a top ten hit and won her a Grammy Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

A second single, theat cole was a famous singer

"Inseparable", also became a hit.

Both songs reached number-one on the R&B chart.

Cole won Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards for her accomplishments, making her the first African-American artist to attain that feat.

The media's billing of Cole as the "new Aretha Franklin" started a rivalry between the two singers.

The singles "Sophisticated Lady" (1976), "I've Got Love on My Mind", and "Our Love" (1977) followed.

The feud boiled over at the 1976 Grammy Awards when Cole beat Franklin in the Best Female R&B Vocal Performance category, a category which Franklin had won eight times before losing to Cole.

Becoming an instant star, Cole responded to critics who predicted a sophomore slump with Natalie, released in 1976.

The album, like Inseparable, became a gold success thanks to the funk-influenced cut "Sophisticated Lady" and the jazz-influenced "Mr. Melody".

Cole released her first platinum record with her third release, Unpredictable, mainly thanks to the number-one R&B hit "I've Got Love on My Mind".

Originally an album track, the album's closer, "I'm Catching Hell", nonetheless became a popular Cole song during live concert shows.

Later in 1977, Cole issued her fourth release and second platinum album, Thankful, which included another signature Cole hit, "Our Love".

Cole was the first female artist to have two platinum albums in one year.

After releasing several albums, she departed from her R&B sound and returned as a pop singer on the 1987 album Everlasting, along with her cover of Bruce Springsteen's "Pink Cadillac".

In the 1990s, she sang traditional pop by her father, resulting in her biggest success, Unforgettable... with Love, which was certified 7× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Unforgettable... with Love won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year, for which Cole became the first African-American woman to win the award.

Throughout her lifetime, Cole received nine Grammy Awards, was nominated for a Primetime Emmy Award, and sold over 30 million records worldwide.

She was awarded the Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1999, and has been inducted into the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame (2021), and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Natalie Cole was born at Cedars of Lebanon Hospital in Los Angeles, California, to American singer and jazz pianist Nat King Cole and former Duke Ellington Orchestra singer Maria Hawkins Ellington, and raised in the affluent Hancock Park district of Los Angeles.

Regarding her childhood, Cole referred to her family as "the black Kennedys" and was exposed to many great singers of jazz, soul and blues.

Its success led to her receiving the Grammy Award for Best New Artist at the 18th Annual Grammy Awards, for which she became the first African-American recipient, as well as the first R&B act to win the award.