Her howling, deep-throated vocals evoked old-school gospel and caused Brown to nickname her the 'Female Preacher.' Under his tutelage she corralled that voice around funk. Though just 23 when she joined the tour, Collins was up to the challenge. "He never said it, but you kind of got that feeling." Baptized the "Female Preacher" of Funkīrown was a strict boss who demanded that his singers wear a lot of hats-from background vocalist to songwriter to warm-up act. " kind of gave you the feeling that you better do it now while you got the chance," Collins later told Billboard.
A few months later, Anderson left the Revue and Collins was offered the principal singing spot. Two of those songs, "Wheels of Life" and "Just Won't Do Right," were released as a two-sided single on Brown's label, People Records, an imprint of Polydor. In February of 1971, while waiting for a place on the Revue roster, Collins went into a Macon, Georgia, studio with Brown and recorded a five-song sampler. Collins was pushed back to the waiting list. Before she could join the group, however, former Brown singer Vicki Anderson showed up and signed on for a two year stint. In 1969 principal singer Marva Whitney gave word that she would be leaving the group and Brown needed a replacement. The James Brown Revue featured a roster of female singers known for their vocal dexterity, powerful range, and unmitigated funk. The "Godfather of Soul" liked what he heard and gave Collins a call. After seeing Brown in concert in 1968 she worked up the nerve to send him a demo tape. At 14 she recorded her first single, "Unlucky in Love." Around the same time, she married a local man who worked as a promoter for the James Brown Revue. By her early teens she was already flexing her powerful voice with a local group, the Charles Pike Singers. Gloria Lyn Collins was born on June 12, 1948, and raised in Abilene, Texas. Leaped from Local Group to Legend's Stage
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