Soul singer Loleatta Holloway has died at the age of 64.
The disco star passed away on Monday (21Mar11) following a brief illness, according to her manager, Ron Richardson.
She reportedly suffered heart failure.
Holloway began singing in a gospel group in her native Chicago, Illinois in the 1960s before signing a recording deal in the early 1970s, which kickstarted her career in the spotlight.
She went on to marry producer Floyd Smith and enjoy a number of hits including Dreaming, Only You and Love Sensation, as well as contributing vocals to Dan Hartman's popular 1979, track Re-Light My Fire.
Holloway continued to enjoy success in the 1980s, and her vocals were used on U.K. number one single Ride on Time by Black Box - but her contribution went uncredited and she later successfully sued the band.
Her first U.S. number one single came when Mark Wahlberg's band, Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, featured her voice on 1991's Good Vibrations.