Natalie Cole, award-winning singer, dies at 65

Confirming the news of Natalie’s death in a statement, the family said: “It is with heavy hearts that we bring to you all the news of our mother and sister’s passing”.

“Natalie fought a fierce, courageous battle, dying how she lived – with dignity, strength and honor”, her family said in a statement.

During her career, Cole established herself as a superstar on the level of her famous father, earning hits with “This Will Be”, “Inseparable” and “Our Love”. The “Unforgettable… with Love” album, on which Cole sang her father’s hits, also swept the top Grammy Awards – including album, record and song of the year – and sold 7 million copies in the United States alone. But she went to the University of MA in Amherst with no plans of an entertainment career.

Natalie Cole passed away on December 31, 2015 at hospital in Los Angeles at the age of 65. Nonetheless, fans will always have the music she gave them.

Natalie is survived by her son Robert Yancy, from her first marriage to producer Marvin Yancy.

Following graduation, Cole began singing rock and R&B covers at clubs with her band, Black Magic.

“Our parish really rallied around her, supporting her through prayer”, he said, during Cole’s illness and 2009 transplant.

The success of “Unforgettable” capped her comeback after a dark period of heroin, crack and alcohol abuse.

Among her many accomplishments is her involvement with the Afghan World Foundation cause, a non-profit organization providing support for the expansion of educational, economical and medical advancement in Afghanistan.

Yet over a long career, Cole recorded a broad selection of material, including Tin Pan Alley staples, songs written for her and songs by, among others, Fiona Apple and Bruce Springsteen.

Natalie’s 1991 jazz album, “Unforgettable …”

From online dating to father-daughter wedding dances, her voice was the soundtrack to American romance. She also had a liver transplant due to liver disease.

‘Sophisticated Lady. I Love Natalie Cole so much man. One of the first childhood idols I got to meet and nerd out on when I first got in the business.’ – Questlove from The Roots. At the age of 11 she started performing on TV show alongside her father.

But, like so many popular artists, Cole also experienced problems with her quick rise to success, spurred on in part by her difficulties dealing with the death of her father from lung cancer in 1965, when he was 45 and she was just 15.

She was married three times and divorced her most recent husband, Kenneth Dupree in 2004.

One of her biggest hits came with “Miss You Like Crazy”. In 1983, drug addiction led Cole to spend a few months at the Hazelden Clinic in Minnesota.