A star in her teens, a star in her 70s
Bettye LaVette was 16 when she had her first hit in 1962. Forty-seven years later she performed at Barack Obama's inauguration.
Bettye LaVette was a 16-year-old growing up in Detroit when she had her first hit, My Man, in 1962. In 2009 she performed at President Obama's inauguration celebration and called it "the greatest day of my life". But the path from that first hit to the recognition she now enjoys around the world has not been smooth. She talks to Emily Webb about how she spent the intervening years "working, not waiting," and kept her faith that the phone would always ring.
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Presenter: Emily Webb
Producer: Laura Thomas
Picture: Betty Lavette performs during the Robert Johnson At 100 Centennial celebration at The Apollo Theater on March 6, 2012 in New York City
Credit: Getty Images / FilmMagic / D Dipasupil
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Lives Less Ordinary
Step into someone else’s life and expect the unexpected. Extraordinary personal stories
