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We are sad to report that Anita Pointer, founding member of the GRAMMY-winning group The Pointer Sisters, passed away on December 31 at the age of 74.

Pointer’s publicist, Roger Neal, confirmed to CNN that she was surrounded by her family in her Los Angeles home when she died, following a battle with cancer.

Pointer’s family said in a statement, “While we are deeply saddened by the loss of Anita, we are comforted in knowing she is now with her daughter, Jada and her sisters June & Bonnie and at peace. She was the one that kept all of us close and together for so long. Her love of our family will live on in each of us. Please respect our privacy during this period of grief and loss. Heaven is a more loving, beautiful place with Anita there.”

Pointer is preceded in death by her only daughter Jada, who passed in 2003, and sisters Bonnie and June, who passed in 2020 and 2006 respectively.

The fourth of six children, Anita grew up singing with her sisters at their father’s church in Oakland and sang backup for Taj Mahal, Boz Scaggs, and more before releasing their debut album in 1973, spawning their first big hit, “Yes We Can Can.”

The group would go on to have 13 Top 20 hits on the Billboard charts across a wide variety of genres, from pop (“He’s So Shy,” “I’m So Excited,” “Jump (For My Love)”) to R&B (“Contact,” “How Long (Betcha’ Got a Chick on the Side)”) and even country with “Fairytale,” which earned the group its first GRAMMY for “Best Country Vocal Performance by a Group.”

The Pointer Sisters earned three Grammys and three American Music Awards for their work, as well as a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Anita would stay with the group until 2015, when she retired due to health issues.

Anita Pointer is survived by her sister/groupmate Ruth, brothers Aaron and Fritz, and her granddaughter Roxie.

Anita Pointer, Founding Member of “The Pointer Sisters,” Dies at 74  was originally published on foxync.com