The legendary singer talks being honored with a street renaming in her hometown, her favorite songs, and her induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
When it comes to icons in music, the legendary Dionne Warwick is a “one-of-one.” In a career that has spanned more than six decades, Warwick is the second-most charted female vocalist during the rock era (1955–1999) and is one of the most-charted vocalists of all time. Her classic hits include “Don’t Make Me Over”, “Walk On By” “Alfie”, “I Say A Little Prayer”, “Do You Know the Way to San Jose?,”, “I’ll Never Fall in Love Again”, “Then Came You,” and “That’s What Friends Are For” just to name a few.
Among her many accolades, Warwick is the winner of six Grammy Awards along with the Grammy Life Achievement Award in 2019. She was inducted into the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the Grammy Hall of Fame, the National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame, a recipient of Kennedy Center Honors, and the Apollo Theater Walk of Fame.
As a humanitarian, she’s a pioneer in AIDS research raising millions of dollars for the cause, formerly served as a Goodwill Ambassador for the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization, and the Dionne Warwick Institute in East Orange was named after her.
For her latest honor, a street was renamed in her honor in East Orange, New Jersey on October 11.
In a ceremony that was attended by family, friends, celebrities, and dignitaries, Warwick expressed her immense gratitude for being honored at the place of her birth.
“It’s hard to put into words what I’m feeling. This is as important as having a school named after me in East Orange,” Warwick told WBLS.com. “This is something that’s going to be here forever. And to know that it will be here in the place where I was born and raised, it can’t get any better than that.”
Growing up in East Orange, Warwick shared how her formative training took place in the Black Church where she honed her gift as a gospel singer.
“I don’t know if East Orange had a music scene when I was coming up. All my friends that I grew up with listened to the same music,” she explained. “I grew up in a gospel-singing family so gospel influenced me.”
On social media, Warick has gained a sizable following of more than 600k followers on X (Formerly Twitter) where her followers tune in for her hilarious commentary. Warwick shared how much she loves that her fans want to communicate with her on the app.
“I think it’s great. As I go through airports people come up to me and ask, “Are you going to post something today?’ No, I only do it when I feel I have something to say,” she laughed. “I don’t get up in the morning and say, ‘I need to post something.’ I only share when I have something to say.”
When it comes to her favorite songs that she’s recorded, she said would choose them all. But “The Windows of the World,” which was released in 1967, remains special to her.
“I feel that every song I’ve ever sung is my favorite. But “The Windows of the World” has an incredible meaning, especially for today,” she said. Hal David was the ultimate poet, as far as I’m concerned. He wrote from his heart, and I was fortunate to be the one to convey those words.”
Warwick Talks Passing Of Cissy Houston:
Warwick also spoke about the impact of her late aunt, Cissy Houston, who passed away in early October. She reflected on growing up in the same household as Houston as children.
“After the passing of both of her parents, Cissy lived with us when she was a teenager until she got married,” she said. “My mom was the matriarch of the family at the time and Sissy was the baby of the family so she took her in. She was an incredible person and an amazing singer. We miss her dearly.”
Capping off a week of her receiving her well-deserved flowers, Warwick will officially be inducted into the Rock & Roll of Fame on Oct.19 (Saturday) in Cleveland. She shared that she was stunned when she received the news of her induction, which many believe is an overdue honor.
“I was nominated twice before they finally put me in,” she laughed. “Each time I was nominated, I was thinking that I wasn’t a Rock & Roll singer so why am I being nominated?” Warwick asked.
“Then I realized that they were making changes when Dolly Parton got in. She also said that she wasn’t a Rock & Roll singer,” she added. “But it feels nice to be recognized in that way if that’s how they feel about me.”