Anita Pointer, Singer of The Pointer Sisters, Dies at 74

Anita Pointer, one of four sibling singers who earned pop success and critical acclaim as The Pointer Sisters, died Saturday (Dec. 31) at the age of 74, her publicist announced.

Roger Neal, a publicist, stated that the Grammy winner died while she was visiting family members. The cause of death has not been immediately disclosed.

“While we are deeply sorry for the loss of Anita we are comforted by the fact that she is now with Jada and her sisters June and Bonnie. In the statement, Ruth McKain Pointer, Fritz, and Fritz’s brother and sister, Roxie McKain pointed out that she was the one who kept us all close and together for so many years.

Anita Pointer’s only daughter, Jada Pointer, died in 2003.

Anita, Ruth and Bonnie Pointer were born to ministers’ daughters. They grew up singing in their father’s church in Oakland, California.

The group’s 1973 self-titled debut album included the breakout hit, “Yes We Can Can.” Known for hit songs including “I’m So Excited,” “Slow Hand,” “Neutron Dance” and “Jump (For My Love),” the singers gained a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994.

The 1983 album, Break Out, went triple platinum and garnered two American Music Awards. The group won three Grammy Awards and had 13 U.S. top 20 hit songs between 1973 and 1985, Neal said.

Neal stated that the Pointer Sisters were also the first African American act to perform on the Grand Ole Opry and the first contemporary act ever to perform at San Francisco Opera House.

Bonnie Pointer left the group in 1977, signing a solo deal with Motown Records but enjoying only modest success. “We were devastated,” Anita Pointer said of the departure in 1990. “We did a show on the night she left, but then we just stopped. It was going to fail without Bonnie .”

, so we thought it wouldn’t work.

The group, in various lineups including younger family members, continued recording through 1993.

June Pointer died of cancer at the age of 52 in 2006.

Anita Pointer announced Bonnie Pointer’s death resulting from cardiac arrest at the age of 69 in 2020. In a statement, she stated that “The Pointer Sisters wouldn’t have happened if it wasn’t for Bonnie.”