Jazz Singer Nancy Wilson Dead at 81

The artist and civil rights advocate released over 70 albums and received three Grammy Awards
Nancy Wilson
Nancy Wilson, 1967 (David Redfern/Redferns)

Jazz singer Nancy Wilson has died, The New York Times reports. She was 81 years old. An official cause of death has not been disclosed, but, according to The Times, her manager said Wilson “had been ill for some time” when she died on Thursday, December 13 at her home in Pioneertown, California.

Nancy Wilson’s career began when she was just a teenager. At age 15, while still a high school student in Columbus, Ohio, Wilson won a talent contest that led her to host the twice-weekly local TV show “Skyline Melodies.” In 1959, Wilson moved to New York, where she signed with Capitol Records. She released her debut album Like in Love the next year. In 1965, Wilson won her first of three Grammys, for the single “(You Don’t Know) How Glad I Am” (Best Rhythm & Blues Recording). The song also reached No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Wilson released over 70 albums in her career. Her final record, Turned to Blue won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2007.

Nancy Wilson was also a civil rights advocate who participated in the Selma March in 1965. Her efforts were recognized by the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change in 1993. She also won the NAACP Hall of Fame Image Award in 1998 and was inducted into the International Civil Rights: Walk of Fame in 2005.