Soul singer Patti LaBelle (1944-) was born Patricia Holt on this day in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and began singing in her Baptist church choir while still a teen.

"The only people to get even with are those who have helped you," she once said.

With friend Cindy Birdsong, Labelle formed the pop group, the Ordettes in 1960. A year later, with vocalists Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash, the quartet was renamed Patti LaBelle and the Blue Belles and in 1962 they scored their first multimillion dollar hit, I Sold My Heart to the Junkman.

"Many a false step is made by standing still," said LaBelle.

The passionate diva dazzled the world with the 1970s disco hit Lady Marmalade, which asked the provacative musical question, "Voulez-Vous Couchez Avec Moi Ce Soir?" LaBelle continued to shine with two hits from the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack: New Attitude and Stir It Up.

"Know God, know peace; no God, no peace," she wrote in Patti's Pearls (2001).

In 1999, she scored in the literary world with the bestseller, LaBelle Cuisine. Diagnosed with diabetes, she has been an advocate for healthy eating and spokesperson for the American Diabetes Association.

Afer a successful 40-year career, LaBelle does not intend to slow down: "I still have so much more to do, so many other things to try. I have a lot of blessings, a lot to be thankful for…but I’m always excited about what else there is for me to do."

Keep your eyes ahead.