Cheryl Lynn Biography
Cheryl Lynn Smith, 11 March 1957, Los Angeles, California, USA. The full-throated Lynn became a hit-maker at the height of disco's popularity, singing dance tunes that retained the gospel vocal approach of classic soul. Lynn grew up in the church where her mother was a minister of music. Her break into the music business came in 1976 after she won as a contestant on the US television amateur talent show The Gong Show. Before signing with Columbia, however, she spent half a year with a touring company of The Wiz, a black musical based on the Wizard Of Oz story. Lynn achieved a million-seller with her very first record, "Got To Be Real", reaching number 1 R&B and number 12 pop in 1978. Other chart entries followed, notably "Shake It Up Tonight" (US R&B number 5), "Encore" (US R&B number 1), and "If You Were Mine" (US R&B number 11). She also enjoyed success in 1982 with an excellent remake of the Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell hit, "If This World Were Mine" (US R&B number 4), on which she duetted with Luther Vandross. Her success in the UK was minimal, with only "Encore" briefly entering the charts in 1984.
Source: The Encyclopedia of Popular Music by Colin Larkin. Licensed from Muze.
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