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Pointer Sisters <thepointersisters>

"I know there's a pot of Gold for me. All I've got to do is just believe."

	Backstage With Anita Pointer	503 jours il y a
	This legendary performer knows how to put on a show, and living a healthy lifestyle plays a major role. by Dan Carrison The life of an entertainer has much in common with that of a professional athlete. In either case, reward depends upon a curious mixture of self-assertion and self-sacrifice. Both professionals are, in every respect, performers who must take command when their moment arrives, but who must also surrender to a schedule that threatens to drain the very energy they are expected to deliver. It’s not easy. So why do they do it? For Anita Pointer and the Pointer Sisters, the answer is simple: “Love!” she exclaims. “In what other profession do so many people show their love for you and what you’re doing? It’s worth all the travel and all the hassle because the love of an audience can really be very humbling and very wonderful.” Anita is just as grateful for the quieter displays of affection. “We were doing a world tour based on the Fats Waller musical Ain’t Misbehavin’. One night, we performed for an elderly audience, which remained seated before us and didn’t—and couldn’t—whistle and stomp. But the love emanated from them as clearly and as strongly as from any audience of more excitable fans. It was very moving.” The Pointer Sisters have been feeling the love, and returning it, since childhood. With parents in the ministry, sisters Ruth, Anita, Bonnie, and June began pleasing congregations early on, singing gospel music with a joyful exuberance that would characterize their later performances. Bonnie and June were the first to go professional, as a duo; they were soon joined by Anita and became the Pointer Sisters in 1971. A couple of years later, Ruth joined the group, and the quartet of beautiful, talented sisters began making unforgettable music history. In 1974, the group recorded two gold albums (albums selling over 500,000 copies). In 1975, they won their first Grammy. In 1978, the Pointer Sisters, by this time a trio (Ruth, Anita, and June), released their hit single “Fire,” which soared to the top of the pop charts. In 1980, the album He’s So Shy, as well as the titular track from that record, went gold. The following year, “Slow Hand” became a gold single and was followed by another gold album, Black & White. The trio added two more Grammys to their collection as well as two American Music Awards in 1985, all while their best-selling album, Break Out, sold over 3 million copies! This album features the smash hits “Jump (For My Love)” and “I’m So Excited.” From then on, this remarkable team—now comprised of Anita, Ruth, and Ruth’s beautiful daughter, Issa—continued to appear on stages around the world before throngs of adoring fans. All the World’s a Stage “We went to Belgium contracted to do three shows,” explains Anita, “and ended up doing 10!” As if that weren’t enough pressure, the Pointer Sisters had previously committed to doing a television show in Paris. “We hopped on a train, did the show, then hurried back to Belgium,” laughs Anita. “It was pretty hectic!” Europe is only one of the continents toured by this tireless trio. “One of our greatest trips,” recalls Anita, “was to Africa. We accompanied Muhammad Ali to Zaire for his championship fight with George Foreman. I’d never seen so many people: 300,000 strong. I visited villages there and ate dinner in huts. I spent the night on the Congo River and watched the sun rise and the fishermen going out in their tiny canoes.” Anita remembers the first time they toured Egypt. “We got in late and went immediately to sleep. In the morning, I opened the window of my hotel room and standing there before me were the three pyramids! I was so astonished, I dropped to my knees and thanked God for giving us the chance to see the world, and to sing to the world.” Intense Workout “Not only do we dance and jump and kick as we sing, we’re doing it under the hot lights of the stage. It can be exhausting, especially if you do 10 shows in 14 days. But, thankfully, a responsive audience gives you energy.” How is she able to maintain such a pace? “Well, we all try to eat very healthfully. Ruth is especially good at keeping us on the straight and narrow. The first thing she does in a foreign country is go to the local market. She brings home the greens and the fruits and vegetables and that’s what we eat. If we do go to a restaurant, you’ll never see butter or gravies or white bread and rice at our table. We eat salads and broiled fish and stay away from the desserts.” The Show Must Go On As performers, their reputation for reliability is impeccable. Shows are booked months, perhaps years, in advance. However, viruses have no regard for a singer’s schedule. “I’ve gone on stage so sick, [with] a doctor waiting in the wings,” recalls Anita, “but I wasn’t about to let the audience down. That’s our philosophy as a group: the show must go on. One of my sisters, years ago, left her hospital bed to appear on the Johnny Carson Show. She just made herself do it. “Of course, the trick is not to have to push yourself. So we work at staying healthy year-round because we are booked year-round. We eat right, take vitamins, exercise, and stay away from the vices you read about in the entertainment industry, like alcohol and drugs. It’s not rocket science, but it’s amazing how many performers don’t treat their bodies right.” Anita also has a “daily routine of drinking liquid greens,” a ritual she swears by. As to their future plans, “Retirement has crossed our minds, because there are other things we’d like to do one day,” Anita says. “But I imagine we’ll be performing as long as we can.” When asked how she continually moves forward, she tells the Journal, “Being happy is the real source of energy, and happiness is the real source of healing.”
	posté par Pointer Sisters