Kathy Sledge has been performing with her sisters in one form or another since she was 13 years old and, despite a decades-old rift, told Newsweek that she does not rule out reuniting on stage.
Sledge, 65, is one of the founding members of what she calls “the original girl group,” Sister Sledge, who brought the world the hit songs, “We Are Family,” and “Thinking of You.” It is Sledge’s lead vocals on those iconic tunes, which helped propel them to international stardom and kept them household names almost 50 years later.
The original Sister Sledge formed in 1971 featured Sledge, who was the youngest, and her sisters, Debbie, Joni and Kim. Their breakout hits were recorded in 1979 and produced by music legends Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards.
It was with her sister Debbie that Sledge had a public falling-out, with the former saying Sledge abandoned the group and that they couldn’t get a hold of her to find out what was going on. Sledge had left in 1989 to pursue a solo career and other avenues in the entertainment industry, including producing live shows for music festivals.
Sledge’s reasoning for leaving the group then remains why she is not rushing back to Sister Sledge.
Main: Sister Sledge poses for a portrait session circa 1984 in Los Angeles, California. Inset left: Kathy Sledge attends Philly Fights Cancer: Round 6 at The Fillmore Philadelphia on May 20, 2023 in Pennsylvania. The youngest sister opened up on a potential reunion with her siblings.
Lisa Lake/Getty Images for Philly Fights Cancer, Harry Langdon/Getty Images
“It’s funny, but what people need to see is that we’ve been doing this our entire life, and it’s refreshing to go into new horizons,” Sledge told Newsweek, “and I’m very excited right now… and embracing this plateau of producing.”
Her sisters continued to perform as Sister Sledge, and she eventually won a legal battle in 2021 to use the family brand again and now does live shows as Sister Sledge featuring Kathy Sledge.
While she reconciled with Kim just before the coronavirus pandemic—Joni passed away in 2017—Sledge is happy to keep working the way she has for decades, but does not rule out reuniting with her sisters.
“I’ll think about something like that later,” Sledge said of a possible reunion, adding: “I wouldn’t say no to that. But, in the meantime, I’m embracing the threshold right now where I am.”
Sledge has plenty on her plate, including touring; she has been in the United Kingdom since May and will perform at the Uptown Festival in Cardiff, Wales, alongside Maxi Priest and other artists on September 15.
Sledge is also doing a podcast with her daughter Kristen Gabrielle called Family Room and they also work together to create the fashions she wears on stage. Sledge has continued to write and record new music, this month releasing a new song called “Promise Me.”
Sledge is not the only one of her sisters open to reuniting; Debbie also recently spoke about the group’s future.
“We’re going to work out our differences—just like all families,” Debbie told the U.K newspaper The Mirror in June.
