Anita Pointer, an original and long-serving member of Californian pop and R&B group The Pointers Sisters, has died. Representatives for Pointer revealed that her death followed a “lengthy and heroic battle with cancer,” per TMZ. The Pointer Sisters’ official website features a statement confirming Anita’s passing. It reads, “She was surrounded by family at the time of her death.”
Anita Pointer was born in 1948 and formed the group with her younger sisters, Bonnie and June Pointer, in 1969. Bonnie and June left the group in 1977, but Anita kept recording and performing alongside her older sister, Ruth Pointer. Health issues forced Anita to leave the group sometime around 2015.
The Pointer Sisters – ‘Neutron Dance’
The Pointer Sisters released their self-titled debut album in 1973, achieving immediate success with the single ‘Yes We Can’. The group’s 1974 single ‘Fairytale’ was an Australian top 40 hit, but the group didn’t hit their commercial peak until a decade later.
Beginning with 1980’s ‘He’s So Shy’, The Pointer Sisters produced a succession of popular singles in the first half of the 1980s. 1981’s ‘Slow Hand’ made it to #2 in the US and #5 in Australia. The Pointer Sisters released their most-recognised single, ‘I’m So Excited’, in 1982, which appeared on their ninth studio LP, So Excited!
This success carried over to the group’s next album, 1984’s multi-platinum Break Out, which yielded the hit singles ‘Jump (For My Love)’, ‘Neutron Dance’ and ‘Automatic’.
Anita and Ruth Pointer were booked to compete as a duo in season six of the US version of The Masked Singer, which aired in 2021. Ruth ultimately performed solo, explaining that Anita was unable to appear due to illness.
Anita’s younger sisters and former band mates Bonnie and June died before her; Bonnie at 69 in 2020 and June at 52 in 2006. Ruth Pointer continues to stage intermittent The Pointer Sisters live shows, joined by her daughter Issa and granddaughter Sadako Pointer.
Further Reading
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