Roberta Flack, the singer who immortalized <em>Killing me softly with his song,</em> has died

Before Lauryn Hill's Fugees achieved global success in 1996 with their version of Killing Me Softly with His Song , there was Roberta Flack, some 20 years earlier (22, to be more precise), who immortalized Charles Fox's composition, with lyrics by Norman Gimbel. The singer, born in 1937 in North Carolina, would also rise to the top of the sales charts with songs such as The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face (written by Ewan MacColl in 1957 and sung by Flack 15 years later) and Feel Like Makin' Love (the American singer was the first to record the song written by Eugene McDaniels, which would later be sung by D'Angelo, Roy Ayers, Isaac Hayes, etc.).

Roberta Cleopatra Flack died on Monday at the age of 88. The news was announced by a spokesperson for the artist, who did not reveal the cause of death. “We are heartbroken by the passing of the glorious Roberta Flack. She died peacefully, with her family by her side. Roberta broke barriers and records. She was also a proud educator,” reads the statement.

Music was very present in the girl's family, who began singing in the church choir near her home at an early age. Her interest in the piano manifested itself at the age of nine, when she began taking lessons. Flack would prove to be something of a prodigy: at the age of 15, she was already enrolled at Howard University in Washington, with a scholarship in her pocket.