Betty Johnson, Charlotte native who became a pop music icon, dies at 93
Charlotte native Betty Johnson’s rise to fame was decades ago, but her voice still has an international reach.
Johnson graduated from Harry P. Harding High School, and attended Queens College, according to her son, Dick Redding. After school, it wasn’t long before her career as a singer took off.
“People all over the world would buy her music,” Redding said. “The fact that there were fans all over the world that loved her music really energized her, so that’s a real blessing.”
Though she led a career that most aspiring musicians dream about, Redding said his mother lacked a skill that many successful musicians spend years perfecting.
“My mom could not read music regularly,” Redding said, “but I think she had perfect pitch.”
Johnson died Nov. 6 at her home in South Carolina. She was 93.
A path to stardom
Johnson’s music career began when she was a kid in the late 1930s as a member of The Johnson Family Singers, a gospel group that consisted of her, her father, Jesse; mother, Betty; and three brothers: Kenneth, Bob and Jim.
After winning a singing contest, The Johnson Family Singers secured a slot performing on WBT, a radio station in Charlotte, from 1938-1951, Redding said. The group went on to tour around the region, and record nearly 100 songs for Columbia Records and RCA Records, two of the most prominent record labels at the time.
But Johnson would later split from her family and make the transition from religious music to pop music in the early 1950s after winning as a contestant on “Arthur Godfrey’s Talent Scouts,” a 1950s show that Redding likened to current hit shows like “The Voice” and “American Idol.”
“I think she saw an opportunity to earn a living,” Redding said. “Maybe a better living than she saw with The Johnson Family Singers. I’m sure she was encouraged by the family.”
In 1955, Johnson signed with RCA Records as a solo artist. The record label sent her to Chicago, where she was a regular on the TV series “Eddy Arnold Time,” and the daily network radio show, “Don McNeill’s Breakfast Club.”
A year later, following her signing with Bally Records, Johnson’s hit, “I Dreamed,” reached No. 9 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The same year, Johnson was crowned as Cashbox Magazine’s No. 1 New Girl Vocalist, beating out music legends Patsy Cline and Brenda Lee, Redding said.
After taking some time off, Johnson returned to performing at New York venues like The Oak Room at the Algonquin and The Cafe Pierre, according to Redding. She recorded her final album, “Four Shades of Gray,” with her two daughters, Lydia and Elisabeth, in 2017, when she was 88.
Being a mom
Throughout her career, Johnson encountered people who wanted to party, drink and smoke marijuana, but because she was “all business,” Redding said, she never took part in illicit activities.
“She was always very grounded, and I think her faith played a large part in that,” Redding said. “I think she dealt with success in a very beautiful way.”
Johnson and her first husband ended their relationship when Redding was young, so while she lived in New York City, Redding lived with his father 500 miles away in Blacksburg, Virginia.
Despite being on the road often for performances, Johnson still made time to see her son.
“I grew up in Blacksburg, and she would make a point to come every year and visit my school,” said Redding, adding that one of Johnson’s hits, “Little Blue Man,” was popular with his classmates. “She had an amazing voice.”
Redding also spent some time with his mother in New York when he was a kid. By that point, Johnson had reached A-list celebrity status, so it was common for people to notice her in public, he said.
“Living in a small town, it was fun to go to a big city,” Redding recalled. “People would recognize her when went to nice places to eat. It made me very proud.”
In her spare time, Johnson, who was a master gardener, enjoyed maintaining flowers, Redding said – and watching Duke basketball.
“She absolutely adored Coach K,” Redding said. “I didn’t see it as a coincidence that she died the day before Duke was going to play their first game without him.”
Rooted in faith
Redding said one of things he’ll cherish most about his mom was her devout faith, which helped propel her music career.
“Her faith was her rock,” Redding said, adding that she served on committees and sang in choirs at many worship services she attended. “She read the Bible regularly, and she was a huge contributor to all the churches she went to.
When Johnson moved to South Carolina, she started attending the same church her son did in Charlottesville, Virginia, so the pair would discuss the services frequently, Redding said.
Like many other congregations, Redding’s church shifted to online services during the COVID-19 pandemic – which gave him even more opportunities to bond with his mother who lived two states away.
“Every Sunday we’d get the online link, and I’d send it to her and say ‘See you in church, Mom,’” Redding said. “It was a great way for her to stay connected to her faith and to her congregation.”
Many people learn to sing through years of coaching, but Redding said his mother believed her musical ability was a “gift from God” – and that he expects her voice to reach thousands of adoring listeners for many years to come.
“She felt like it was her obligation to share that gift,” Redding said. “She really lived a blessed life.”
This story was originally published December 9, 2022 at 6:00 AM.
