Roberta Flack, the "Killing Me Softly" legend, was supposed to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1999, but the honor was never publicly developed.
Plans never came about, and when she died at 88, the respect she seemed to be owed raised questions.
Ana Martinez, who works for the Hollywood Walk of Fame, told TMZ that a star had been approved for Flack, but a ceremony had never been scheduled.
She hopes Flack's family will call now to set up an official tribute. The outlet reported that the dates are already locked for this year, so if the request is made, the reveal won't happen after 2025.
This is a scenario similar to Whitney Houston's, who was given the go-ahead for a star but never set a date before she died in 2012.
A Legacy That Defined Generations
On October 31, 1976, Flack, a mainstay of the 1970s with her mellifluous vocals and plaintive ballads, became the first black female artist to win a Grammy Award for Record of the Year.
Things broke for her when Clint Eastwood picked her "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" for his 1971 film "Play Misty for Me." The song went on to hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 the next year and won her a Grammy for Record of the Year.
In 1973, she shattered records by being the first artist — ever — to win the Grammy for Record of the Year two years in a row (honors went to "Killing Me Softly with His Song"). Hits solidified her R&B history like "Feel Like Makin' Love and duets with Donny Hathaway like "Where Is the Love and "The Closer I Get to You."
Battling Illness and Last Goodbye
Flack was diagnosed with ALS, more commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in 2022 and said she lost her ability to sing.
The singer died of cardiac arrest while on the way to the hospital, her longtime manager Suzanne Koga confirmed to The New York Times.
Over the years, Flack has won five Grammys (including a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2020) and earned eight other nominations, but she has never had the opportunity to see her Walk of Fame star come to life. She once told Songwriter Universe about the magic of music: "I love that connection to other artists because we understand music, we live music, it's our language."
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