She Sang on One of the Most Famous Disco Songs Ever

The name Alfa Anderson may not be of the household variety, but it's a safe bet most people have heard her sing. Anderson—who has died at age 78—can be heard on "Le Freak," a song by the group Chic that is one of the most recognizable songs of the disco era. So much so that the Library of Congress added it to the National Recording Registry in 2017, reports the New York Times. It's "completely evocative of an era but also undeniably timeless," the library declared. "Seminal" is the word used by Deadline in its obituary of Anderson, which notes that the song is an homage to Studio 54.

Anderson, however, had a long, successful career that went beyond a single song. She sang with Chic in the 1970s and 1980s, then performed with the likes of Luther Vandross, Gregory Hines, Mick Jagger, and Teddy Pendergrass. Pitchfork notes she was also a teacher, including a stint as principal at Brooklyn's El Puente Academy for Peace and Justice. No cause of death has been released for Anderson, who was a native of Georgia. (Read other notable obituaries.)