Gladys Knight, one of the greatest legends in music, will perform at the University of Alabama at Birmingham’s Alys Stephens Performing Arts Center on Sunday, Feb. 18, 2024.
The performance is set for 6 p.m. Tickets are $69, $79 and $89. For tickets, call 205-975-2787 or visit AlysStephens.org.
Very few singers over the last 50 years have matched Knight’s unquestionable artistry. This Legend Award and seven-time Grammy Award winner, known as the “Empress of Soul,” has enjoyed No. 1 hits in pop, gospel, R&B, and adult contemporary, and has triumphed in film, television and live performance, according to her artist’s statement.
Georgia-born, Knight began performing gospel music at age 4 in the Mount Mariah Baptist Church and sang as a guest soloist with the Morris Brown College Choir. Three years later, she won the grand prize on television’s “Ted Mack’s Amateur Hour,” and the following year, her mother, Elizabeth Knight, created the group consisting of Gladys, her brother Bubba and sister Brenda, and cousins William and Elenor Guest. They called themselves The Pips in honor of their cousin/manager, James Pip Woods.
In her first effort since 2013’s “Another Journey,” on Sept. 9, Knight released “Where My Heart Belongs,” a new inspirational gospel album. Knight is a two-time Grammy winner in the gospel category, and “Where My Heart Belongs” has won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Gospel Album.
“Another Journey” enjoyed success from the hit “I Who Have Nothing” as well as the up-tempo track “Settle,” produced by Randy Jackson, with whom she previously collaborated on her Grammy-winning album, “At Last.” Her song “You and I Ain’t Nothin’ No More” appeared over the end credits of the critically acclaimed Lee Daniels film “The Butler.”
Beyond her musical prowess, Knight has graced the screens of film and television, even showcasing her dancing skills on “Dancing with the Stars.” Knight recently returned to the small screen in the Lifetime original movie “Seasons of Love,” alongside Oscar-nominated Taraji P. Henson and fellow Grammy winner Cliff “Method Man” Smith. In the new year, she will guest on Daniels’ and FOX TV’s new series “Empire” opposite Terrence Howard and Henson.
A humanitarian and philanthropist, she champions charitable causes, including as a supporter of the Boys & Girls Club of America and as a national spokesperson for the American Diabetes Association. With an enduring faith in God guiding her through a multifaceted life as a wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, entertainer, restaurateur and businesswoman, Knight is an icon who has left an indelible mark on the world, according to her artist’s statement.