Australian music legend Helen Reddy has died, age 78

Australian music legend Helen Reddy has died, aged 78. Her children, Traci and Jordan, confirmed the news via a statement on the ‘Helen Reddy Official Fan Page’ on Facebook.

“It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Helen Reddy, on the afternoon of September 29th 2020 in Los Angeles,” they wrote.

“She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and a truly formidable woman. Our hearts are broken. But we take comfort in the knowledge that her voice will live on forever.”

Helen Reddy was famous for her 1972 hit ‘I Am Woman’, was diagnosed with dementia in 2015 and moved into the Motion Picture and Television Fund’s Samuel Goldwyn Center, a nursing home for retired talent in Los Angeles.

Also famous for other hits like ‘Delta Dawn’, ‘Leave Me Alone (Red Ruby Dress)’ and ‘You and Me Against the World’, Reddy’s life was immortalised last year in a biopic titled I Am Woman, directed by Unjoo Moon and starring Tilda Cobham-Hervey.

The biopic, which became available to watch in Australia on Stan earlier this year, marked notable moments in Reddy’s long career, including her famous GRAMMYs acceptance speech, where she thanked God “because she makes everything possible”.

Jim Keaton, also released a statement on the same Facebook page.

“Quiet Please, There is a Lady Leaving the Stage,” he wrote, before sharing anecdotes denoting Reddy’s love of her children.
“Helen was as proud of Traci and Jordan as any mother could ever be of their children,” Keaton wrote.
“I am so very thankful to Traci and Jordan for sharing their mother with me,” he continued.

“And to Helen for adding more to my life than I can ever explain or describe. She always left me feeling loved (even when I got on her last nerve!) and that I mattered. That, in itself, is a rare and precious gift that I will treasure for the rest of my life.”