Kiki Dee

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Lore & Background

Dee was born in Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. She realised she loved singing when she got attention at family parties and Christmases. Her older brother had a lot of Elvis on vinyl, which was her first introduction to music in the Fifties. At age 10, she won a local talent contest. After singing with a local band in Bradford in the early 1960s, she began her recording career as a session singer, singing backing vocals for Dusty Springfield, among others. In 1963, she released her first single, "Early Night", the first of eleven singles on Fontana, none of which reached the charts. Songwriter Mitch Murray created her stage name and penned that first single. In the United States she became the first white British artist to be signed by Motown, releasing her first Motown single in 1970. It was only after she signed with Elton John's label, Rocket, that she became a household name in the UK. Her first major solo hits were "Amoureuse" (1973) and "I've Got the Music in Me" (1974), the latter credited to the Kiki Dee Band. Dee's biggest hit came in 1976, a duet with John, "Don't Go Breaking My Heart", which reached number one in both the UK and US, remaining at the top for six weeks in the UK. At the end of that summer, she played as support act to Queen at their Hyde Park concert in front of a crowd of 150,000 people.

In Their Own Story

In 1993, Dee performed another duet with John for his Duets album, a cover version of Cole Porter's "True Love", which reached number two in the UK. She had previously performed at Live Aid in 1985, reprising "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" with John and performing backing vocals on the other songs in his set. In November 2022, Dee joined Elton John on stage to sing "Don't Go Breaking My Heart" again for the final US show of his Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Dee was portrayed by actress Rachel Muldoon in the 2019 Elton John biopic Rocketman.

Reader's Guide

Dee has appeared in musical theatre, including a leading role in Willy Russell's West End musical Blood Brothers, for which she received an Olivier Award nomination in 1989 in the Best Actress in a Musical category. She had previously starred in Pump Boys and Dinettes in London's West End at the Piccadilly Theatre from 20 September 1984 to 8 June 1985. Dee released the live album Almost Naked, a joint effort with Carmelo Luggeri in 1995, followed by the studio albums Where Rivers Meet (1998) and The Walk Of Faith (2005) with Luggeri. In September 2013, Dee and Luggeri released their third studio album, A Place Where I Can Go. Dee and Luggeri's album Long Ride Home was released in April 2022. In her forties, Dee was diagnosed with uterine cancer. As of 2024, she has never married and has no children.

Did You Know?

• Dee was the first female singer from the UK to sign with Motown's Tamla Records.
• Her stage name was created by songwriter Mitch Murray, who also penned her first single 'Early Night'.
• She played as support act to Queen at their Hyde Park concert in front of a crowd of 150,000 people in 1976.
• Her 1981 single 'Star' became the theme song for the talent show Opportunity Knocks when it was revived by the BBC in 1987.
• Dee was diagnosed with uterine cancer in her forties and as of 2024 has never married and has no children.