One of the founding members of “The Supremes”, Mary Wilson, has died at the age of 76 according to a statement by her publicist, Jay Schwartz. His statement indicates that Wilson “passed away suddenly this evening”. She passed away at her home in Henderson, Nevada; she is survived by her daughter, son, sister and brother, and grandchildren.
Her services will be private due to Covid-19 restrictions on assembly, and a celebration of her life is already in the works and will make its debut later in 2021. The publicist did not indicate if the celebration will be virtual or live, they are probably developing both as options just in case Covid-19 is still problematic later this year.
According to Schwartz, she was a “trendsetter who broke down social, racial, and gender barriers.” Her career began in 1959 in Detroit when she joined a band called “The Primettes”. Over time the group transformed into “The Supremes” and became Motown’s most successful singing group in the 1960s. They had 12 number one singles including “Where Did Our Love Go,” “Baby Love,” and “Stop! In the Name of Love.”
“The influence not only carries on in contemporary R&B, soul and pop, they also helped pave the way for mainstream success by Black artists across all genres,” the statement reads. In 2018, Billboard celebrated the 60th anniversary of Motown by releasing a list of “The Hot 100s Top Artists of All Time,” and The Supremes were selected at number 16.
In addition to a ground-breaking music career, Wilson was also a bestselling author, motivational speaker, and U.S. Cultural Ambassador. “Wilson used her fame and flair to promote a diversity of humanitarian efforts including ending hunger, raising HIV/AIDS awareness and encouraging world peace.”
Wilson was also influential in the development of the Music Modernization Act (MMA) of 2018, which found solutions for copyright issues for new and existing music, which gives artists a way of owning their music if they want to, even during the digital age where music streaming is used more often than the traditional downloading of music. Prior to this act, many songs before 1972 needed a modern copyrighting infrastructure to protect intellectual property.
Wilson launched a solo career after The Supremes disbanded in 1977. Even as a solo artist, Wilson still carried the flair and style from when she was in The Supremes, and was still very much in the spotlight. In 2019, she was a contestant on Dancing With The Stars, and published her fourth book- Supreme Glamour. Outside of the arts, she was also an advocate for various socio-political causes. Jan. 21 was the 60th anniversary of the day The Supremes signed their contract with Motown in 1961. Wilson was vibrant during the celebrations.
Even though she was having a lot of success in different areas, Wilson also wanted the band to get back together and do some special concerts for their fans around the world, especially in the U.S. and UK where their popularity as a group skyrocketed. “Well, let’s put it this way: It’s really up to Diana,” Wilson told The Hollywood Reporter in January. “I don’t think she wants to do that. It doesn’t make sense unless you come together lovingly. Or at least have an understanding. It can be an understanding, that’s fine, but I don’t think she does want to. So therefore I’m going on with my life.” Wilson stated.
She is correct, if a reunion of The Supremes were to happen-even just for one night only-they would need the support of their lead singer Diana Ross. It is important to note that unfortunately the reunion cannot happen now, but Wilson did not have any bad feelings towards her former collaborator. Wilson’s family made a statement to the fans that if they would like to support some of the causes that Wilson did in her lifetime, they could make a donation or volunteer time for UNCF.Org and the Humpty Dumpty Institute.