Legendary soul singer Patti LaBelle recently announced in an interview that she rejects the label “diva” because she feels that the label is being thrown around too much to "all the little heifers who can't sing" who have not earned it.
In the interview with PrideSource, Patti discussed the her career, including her status as a legend. When asked what it means to be a diva, she said that she doesn't even claim the title anymore. She said that the word is thrown around so loosely that it lacks truth anymore. She says she prefers to be referred to as, “a woman who sings her heart out and who gives 120 percent.”
She also went on to comment that the women of the new generation being called divas are a “hot mess” and have not properly earned the respect like she and her counterparts did in their day. “Gladys Knight, Aretha Franklin, Dionne Warwick. You know, I'm speaking for me – I don't know if they like to be called divas – but I know I wouldn't call them divas, because it's not in good company.”
According to NY Daily News, the 69-year old is currently touring and is currently working on a jazz album, dance album, and a collection of ballads for another album.
Image Credit: PBS