Iconic girl group reunite for UK tour with original member after selling 20 million albums and tragic death
POP legends Sister Sledge are going on a UK tour – four decades after they’re huge hit We Are Family.
The singing sisters, who formed in 1971 in Philadelphia, will bring their disco hits to theatres across the country next month.
They previously performed at a sold out show in London’s Roundhouse followed by the Royal Albert Hall in June.
They’re now set to dazzle in cities around the UK including Scunthorpe, Birmingham, Folkestone and Bath, with 19 dates across the month of November.
The band still features original Debbie Sledge, who went it alone with her sister Kim after the death of their other sibling Joni.
The dance song We Are Family quickly became an anthem of unity and girl power, written by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards.
They’re also known for hits including Lost In Music and Thinking Of You.
And there are new members joining the group too Camille Sledge, Thaddeus Sledge, David Sledge, and Tanya Tiet.
It was in 2017 that Joni Sledge was found dead at her home by a friend in Phoenix, Arizona.
At the time a family statement read: “Yesterday, numbness fell upon our family. We welcome your prayers as we weep the loss of our sister, mother, aunt, niece and cousin.”
The group’s Twitter account posted a picture of Joni alongside the words “We love you Joni”.
Daughters of two performers, Joni and her three sisters grew up in Philadelphia and enjoyed moderate success touring in the 1970s with R&B songs, before finding stardom with the release of We Are Family.
In an interview with The Guardian, Joni said the sisters had become professionally frustrated by the time they made We Are Family and had considered other careers, such as studying law.
She said: “Recording the track ‘We Are Family’ was like a one-take party – we were just dancing and playing around and hanging out in the studio when we did it.”
Speaking in 2015 to Women’s Wear Daily, Joni said We Are Family carried a time-tested message of unity.
She said: “It’s just as powerful today. That’s one of the good things about it. It teaches respect.”
Since breaking through with ‘He’s The Greatest Dancer’, the Grammy nominated group have amassed a string of Gold and Platinum records and accumulated total sales of over 15million worldwide.