Born on November 8, 1947 to Daniel and Thelma Riperton, Minnie was the youngest of eight children. At the age of three she started modern dance lessons, followed by ballet lessons at 5. Her voice lessons began at the age of nine and she was developing her operatic chops at 11. Her goal at a very young age was to become a famous singer... she sat on the edge of a dream and it came true. A neighborhood playmate (reported to Ebony magazine, 1979) said she demonstrated extraordinary devotion and discipline to her dream. It was not unusual for her to interrupt playing with her friends , so she would be on time for her music instruction. Minne studied opera under Marion Jeffries. As recalled by Minnie, (reported to journalist Al Rudis) she spent months and months learning how to breathe, listening to and holding vowels. Eventually, she began singing operas and operettas with a show tune every so often. Despite her natural talent (a pure five to six octave soprano) for opera, Minnie was more attracted to "Rock N Roll" and the promise of touring. She would inevitably discontinue her classical training to follow her dream of being a famous vocalist. It would, however, be her classical training which brought her the success she sought.
As a pre-teen she sung in the acapella choir of Hyde Park High School as a freshman. She was known to leave school early to make $10 a song singing backup at local studios. Some reports indicate that Minnie signed her first contract at 14, while others report her to be 16. Whichever the case, the talented and devoted Minnie was "discovered" in the early 60'sand signed a recording contract with the "Gems" at the now famous Chess Studios (the Gems recordings can be heard on "Minnie Riperton: Her Chess Years").
In 1967 Minne joined the "rock/jazz/vocal ensemble" Rotary Connection. Although, the group was considered popular in Jazz and Rock circles, they never reached the popularity of their closest contemporaries such as "Blood, Sweat and Tears" (one Internet source compared them to "Rare Earth", but that is quite a leap). The style of the Rotary Connection was very progressive... somewhere between rock, jazz, pop, and experimental (what is referred to today as "alternative"). Their highly progressive christmas album, "Peace" (1968) did receive national recognition and the Rotary Connection seemed to be moving to the top. "Christmas Love" was the Christmas song of 1968 and 1969.
Minnie was with the Rotary Connection when she met the love of her life, her husband, Richard Rudolph. They would be the proud and loving parents of two children, Maya and Marc. Minnie was very happy with her little family and continued to write music while living in Gainesville, Florida. The international pop hit "Lovin' You" started out as a lullaby for Maya. Much later the names of Marc and Maya would be used in other songs such as "Love And It's Glory", and "It Wouldn't Matter Where You Are".
Minnie continued to do lots of backup vocal work with such artists as Quincy Jones, Roberta Flack, Freddie Hubbard, and Etta James. Minnie's pure soprano was in demand in the studio, and eventually her 1969 recording of the album "Come To My Garden" was released in 1971. Minnie would eventually move her and her family to Los Angeles, where she was part of Stevie Wonder's backup group, WonderLove and begun work on her second solo recording, "Perfect Angel".
Being the "Perfect Angel" that she was, Minnie's career skyrocketed with the release of "Perfect Angel", and "Adventure's In Paradise" in 1974 and 1975, respectively. The following year Minnie would publicly announce that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer and had undergone a modified mastectomy. The world was shocked, her fans were in fear, but she constantly reminded us that she was still alive and that she was brave and spiritually strong enough to handle it. She was reported to have said in an interview, "I don't think God has forsaken me; I think he allowed me to experience this because I was the one who could handle it." This kind of resolve and attitude towards life is the spirit of Minnie. Despite adversity, she continued to pursue her career, be a caring loving mother, and a loving and devoted wife to Richard. Yet, Minnie would not be content just doing all of that. Her "experience" (as Minnie referred to her illness) would give her yet another reason for her life... lending her celebrity and compassion for others to become a spokesperson for breast cancer awareness and the need for self-examination and the benefit of early detection.
Minnie disclosed her experience to a nationwide audience during an appearance on the Johnny Carson show in 1976.nbsp The guest host that night, the late Flip Wilson, was speechless because he had no prior knowledge and it had not been discussed prior to the airing of the show.nbspnbsp After the show, Minnie confided that she had nothing planned. She had been very hesitant to talk about her operation because she didn't want the out pour of sympathy.nbsp Yet, she understood the need for breast cancer awareness and felt duty bound to get the word out to women about the importance of examination and detection.nbsp More importantly, she believed her own experience would prove to women that the procedure, if cancer is detected, did not prevent them from living a completely happy and normal life.
Very shortly after her surgery, she resumed her normal activities. Just a few weeks after her surgery she appeared for the taping of the Ebony Music Awards. When she received her "Ebby", she later revealed, she was so overcome by the thought of how lucky she was to have made it through the ordeal her and her family had went through. This sparked a very deep emotion which explained the tears as she accepted the award. Also being the rececipent of the award was very moving for her, because, as she said, "it came from the people" and she had been blessed enough to be able to accept it and thank the people in person.
Minnie was on a crusade to get the word out to as many women as possible. She performed and spoke at many charity functions, raising moneys to enhance the awareness of women nationwide. Since tennis was her game, you would find her at almost all the celebrity tournaments for charity. Minnie was not only an activist for women's awareness of this life threatening disease. She was a physical and spiritual role model for those thousands of women who mirrored her own experience. She was the champion of champions !
On April 4, 1977 U.S. President Jimmy Carter presented Minnie with the American Cancer Society's "Courage Award". (This touching presentation is available at the Minnie Riperton Legacy Preservation Society website) That following year Minnie would become that organization's National Education Chair. In her role as Chairwoman, Minnie was responsible for implementing the "Self-Examination" pamphlet which is still distributed to women in 2002. Minnie had energy to spare, it seemed. Aside from being a mom, wife, activist, fundraiser, lecturer, and family member, she signed with a new record company (Capitol Records). One of the very few female producers at the time (I am only aware of one other, Joni Mitchell), Minnie's new contract assured her the creative freedom and production quality which she desired. Minnie was happily back in the studio during the summer of 1978 creating what would be her last album, simply entitled "Minnie".
Until the very end of her physical existence Minnie remained positive, loving, and compassionate. One final note which always brings a smile to my lips is Maya's acceptance of a posthumous award for her mom. Posthumously the "Communicator With A Conscience" award was given to Minnie by Hollywood's Rod McGrew Scholarship Fund, Inc. Minnie's six year old daughter, Maya, accepted the award for her mom. With the "propping" assistance of her dad, Maya read:,
