Diana Ross rose to prominence as lead vocalist of the legendary Motown Records group the Supremes before embarking on an equally extraordinary solo career that cemented her status as one of the signature performers and style icons of her time.
Ross (born in Detroit on Mar. 26, 1944) joined the Supremes - originally the Primettes - in 1959; the vocal trio signed to Motown two years later, topping the U.S. pop charts in the spring of 1964 with "Where Did Our Love Go." Motown founder Berry Gordy Jr. installed Ross as the Supremes' official lead singer in 1965, relegating vocalists Florence Ballard and Mary Wilson to supporting roles. The Supremes went on to become the best-selling female group in pop history, notching a series of chart smashes including "You Can't Hurry Love," "Baby Love" and "Stop! In the Name of Love."
Ross split from the Supremes in early 1970, immediately striking paydirt with the solo hits "Reach Out and Touch (Somebody's Hand)" and "Ain't No Mountain High Enough." She crossed over into feature films in 1972, starring as Billie Holiday in the biopic Lady Sings the Blues and earning an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. Ross - named the Female Entertainer of the Century by Billboard in 1976 - scored the biggest hit of her solo career with 1980's "Upside Down," produced by Chic's Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards; "Endless Love," a duet with Lionel Richie, topped the charts the next year. Although her commercial appeal waned in the decades to follow, Ross remained one of the most talked-about and photographed women on the planet, and won the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012.
