Labelle

Labelle was an American music group that originated out of the Blue Belles, a girl group who were a popular vocal group of the 1960s and 1970s. The original group was formed after the disbanding of two rival girl groups in the area around Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania, and Trenton, in New Jersey: the Ordettes and the Del-Capris, forming as a new version of the former group, then later changing their name to the Blue Belles (and further Bluebelles). The founding members were Patti LaBelle (born Patricia Louise Holt), Cindy Birdsong, Nona Hendryx, and Sarah Dash.

As the Bluebelles, and later Patti LaBelle and the Bluebelles, the group found success with ballads in the doo-wop genre: "Down the Aisle (The Wedding Song)", "You'll Never Walk Alone", and "Over the Rainbow". After Birdsong departed to join The Supremes in 1967, the band, following the advice of Vicki Wickham, changed its look, musical direction, and style to re-form as the progressive soul group Labelle in 1971. Their recordings of that period became cult favorites for dealing with subjects not typically addressed by female black groups. Finally, after adapting glam rock and wearing outlandish space-age and glam costumes, the band found success with the proto-disco smash hit "Lady Marmalade" in 1974, leading to the album Nightbirds achieving gold success. They were the first contemporary pop group and first black pop band to perform at the Metropolitan Opera House. They were also the first black vocal group to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.