Irene Cara dies aged 63 - Fame & Flashdance
It's wonderful to wake up, greeted by a big bright sunny day, breathing in the cool air and walking around knowing that another day of nothing but possibility remains wide open to have your imprint placed on it.
It's called living in abundance and If you live long enough, you will also have a chance to experience all the wonders that GOD bestows on you and learn to appreciate each and every day you wake up smiling, full of promise, hope and gratitude.
But then, as with all things in life that bring you joy, the converse is also true and at some point in time, you will inevitably experience the punch to the gut caused by an unexpected personal loss of something or someone that you loved and cherished in equal measure, thus balancing out the scales of life!
It is a sad and beautiful thing that we experience when we suffer a loss a real friend as their time here is cherished and their absence inconsolable. I must say it hurts more and more as each friend or hero passes on to a better place for them leaving a hole in our hearts and a space in our lives that we were not prepared for in Life 101 journal as we were too busy living and learning about it to appreciate how lucky we were.
They all hurt but some much more than others in a more powerful way. You start to feel as if you are Out There On Your Own and ask why did I not have just one more call or a simple "Hey dude!".
I met this angel when I first moved to New York and lived across from the Media Sound, a decision I made so that I had a place to catch up on an hour's or so sleep in between sessions. Brilliant move... living where you work so you actually spend less time home but I was too young and new to the business to understand what I was doing!
I did TONS of mixing and production work and became fast friends with this special, wonderful person who was petite and diminutive in stature but a giant in talent and who connected with me immediately. I used her on many of my sessions and I can remember one where I had her, Luther Vandross and Robin Beck in a session at the same time. They were three of the hottest session singers in New York and you would hear them daily on more commercials than there were locusts during migration.
She was fragile and complex and yet put up a good face for everyone around her because it was her defense mechanism. But when it came to me, she knew I cared for all the people I worked with and saw the individual inside and not just the talent behind the mike, on the other-side of the glass.
She shared her sadness, joys and other feelings and would drop by my offices on 322 West 57th St, on the 44th Floor, walk in and start dancing in front of all the mirrors that I had on my walls to reflect the light way up high in the clouds and proceeded to dance like a ballerina, unfazed that my staff was working carrying on a typical day. I would walk in, see her, say "HI Irene!" have her piroette and go about business, it was the kind of vibe all my dealings had with everyone. She came to decompress and hide out from the rigors of the industry. My place was a Safe Haven for her, free of judgement in any way.
She had demons like we all did, but was a magical mystery tour of emotions that I loved and who she always loved me right back, We were real friends not industry friends!
The late Al Cory hired me to produce and album for her on Network Records as I had just finished working with Gary Myrick for him on his Network debut, but she never showed up to the studio and it all fell apart.
Her accomplishments were many in a life so brief and I am grateful I met my friend whose relationship I had left me asking Why Me ? in a very humble way.
Nothing to say but the news is sad, my heart heavy and the loss inconceivable to those of us who really knew her and who she was as a living breathing person, far beyond the talent that others saw in her.
Today I send my love and prayers to a woman that I loved as an associate and secret friend in time of need and I hope that GOD has already seated her on the choir HE is busily crafting where she will surely sing lead on!
So my dear Irene, remember what you told us all:
Now I hear the music Close my eyes, I am rhythm In a flash, it takes hold of my heart,
What a feeling Being's believin' I can have it all, now I'm dancing for my life
Farewell to a dear friend who was dancing for her life and left us all better for her gifts to us. What a Feeling you left us with and for that we remain in grateful appreciation to you and GOD for giving you to us on loan!
Irene Cara, talented performer, actress, writer and friend has passed away at the young age of 63 and we are not out here on our own since her presence will live on for eternity!
RIP my dear, troubled no more!
"Fame and Flashdance singer Irene Cara has died at the age of 63 in her Florida home.
Cara sang and co-wrote the theme tune to classic movie Flashdance, What a Feeling, for which she won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.
She also played the role of Coco Hernandez in the 1980 blockbuster Fame and for also recording its title song."