Etta James Is Dead at 73

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It’s a tragic day for American music. The one and only Etta James, whose musical career spanned well over half a century, has died. Best known for her immortal 1961 hit “At Last,” the singer explored countless genres over the course of her lifetime, from blues and R&B to rock ‘n’ roll and jazz. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, James was a six-time Grammy winner. After struggling with multiple serious health problems for years and receiving a leukemia diagnosis in 2010, she released what she knew would be her final album, The Dreamer, last year. Coincidentally, James died only a few days after the man who discovered her at 14, Godfather of Rhythm and Blues Johnny Otis. She was 73. The Chicago Sun-Times and the Washington Post have both published lengthy obituaries that are well worth reading.