Born on October 9: Nona Hendryx, the lioness of feminine funk

She was born in 1944 in Trenton, New Jersey, and has always used her undeniable singing talents to serve the causes that are dear to her.

Before launching a career under her own name, she first rose to fame as a founding member of the group The Bluebelles, alongside Patti LaBelle, Sarah Dash, and Cindy Birdsong. They later adopted the surname of their leader, LaBelle, and achieved global success with "Lady Marmalade" in 1974, which was particularly memorable for its French refrain, "Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?" While none of them came close to matching the original, the song has been covered numerous times. All Saints' cover reached number one on the UK charts in 1998. And in 2001, Christine Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mya, and Pink teamed up to give it a slightly more rap-forward feel for the breathtaking soundtrack to the film "Moulin Rouge."

A true symbol of fearless African-American audacity and glamour that vacillates between rock and funk, the main songwriter in LaBelle's repertoire, Nona Hendryx, has never hesitated to compose songs with socially engaged messages.

After LaBelle's split, it was written in the stars that she would continue her solo adventure. Joyfully blending soul, funk, and even hard rock, she also displays an unashamed eclecticism, always tinged with a militant feminism. Over ten albums, sometimes with highly experimental overtones, she often reappears where you least expect her. In 2017, for example, alongside Gary Lucas, she paid tribute to Captain Beefheart on the highly intellectual Knitting Factory label.

With a few flashes of brilliance like "Nona" (1983) and "The Art of Defense" a year later, she went on to collaborate with Material, Talking Heads, Peter Gabriel, Prince, who composed "Baby Go-Go" for her, and Laurie Anderson, whom she joined for "Monkey Suit" on her album "Home of the Brave" (1986). Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones (for whom she has performed on numerous occasions) left his instantly recognizable mark on "Rock This House," nominated for a Grammy Award in 1985.

Coming out as bisexual, Nona has since championed the rights of the LGBTQIA+ community, notably alongside Cyndi Lauper.

Beyond music, the singer also champions civil rights and women's rights. She was also a key figure in Artists United Against. Apartheidavant, more recently, promoted access to education for young African-American girls through her foundation. A true pioneer of Afrofuturism, she has been involved in digital arts for several years, developing performances and installations incorporating artificial intelligence and augmented reality. In 2012, on her excellent but too-little-known album "Mutatis Mutandis" (her "most political" album, according to her), she directly criticized the conservative and reactionary evolution of the United States. While she is not known to have publicly spoken out against Donald Trump, she did write the song "Tea Party" around that time about the movement dear to Sarah Palin, the beginning of the MAGA (Make America Great Again) wave.

At the twilight of a life we hope will be long, Nona Hendryx remains true to her convictions...

(MH with Stéphane Soupart - Photo : © Etienne Tordoir)

Photo: Portrait of Nona Hendryx for the release of her album The Heat in Ostend (Belgium) in August 1985