Beloved R&B singer and member of iconic group dead at 71

Judy Cheeks, an R&B and soul singer best known for her time performing with Ike and Tina Turner's Ikettes, has died.

She was 71.

Her friend, Bill Shrader, shared a statement on Facebook on Nov. 28.

"Friends of Judy Cheeks, I'm so sorry to tell you that Judy passed away, peacefully in the arms of (her) husband on Tuesday evening," he wrote. "I waited until now to tell you so that you could enjoy Thanksgiving before hearing such sad news. I know that is the way Judy would have wanted it. Please pray for her beautiful sweet soul and for her husband who loved her so much."

A cause of death was not revealed, but a GoFundme to help Cheeks "battle autoimmune disease" was set up back in July.

"Sadly, Judy has been battling a rare autoimmune condition for more than nine months now," the statement there read.

"The condition will be life-long but can be manageable over time," it added. "When she is finally able to go home, she will need long-term skilled nursing care."

Cheeks was a native of Miami, Florida, and she performed with the as an R&B singer in the 1970s and 1980s. She moved into more dance-oriented music in the 1990s. The included a move to Germany where she found some international success.

Soultracks.com said she "brought fire to the dance floor for over four decades." The site noted that she also wrote songs for Motown and ended up "lending her powerhouse vocals" on tracks with the likes of Donna Summer, Stevie Wonder and Thelma Houston.

Read the original article on pennlive.com .