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The original 'Dreamgirl'
11.19.09 - 11:55 am
Jennifer Holliday in concert at The Carolina Theatre

WHO: Jennifer Holliday

WHEN: 8 p.m. Saturday

WHERE: The Carolina Theatre, Fletcher Hall, 309 W. Morgan St., Durham

TICKETS: $35-$38. Box office hours are 11 a.m. - 6 p.m. weekdays, and on day of show one hour before show time. To order tickets by phone, call 560-3030 or (888) 241-8162 or go to www.carolinatheatre.org/tickets.

BY DAWN BAUMGARTNER VAUGHAN

dvaughan@heraldsun.com; 419-6563

Long before Jennifer Hudson was belting out "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going," in the film "Dreamgirls," another woman's voice made the song -- in the original Broadway "Dreamgirls" -- a hit.

Rhythm and blues singer Jennifer Holliday won the 1982 Tony Award for best actress in a musical. She has also won two Grammy Awards. But when the recent "Dreamgirls" movie gained fame, the Broadway show, and Holliday herself, weren't recognized, she said. Holliday was disappointed when Oprah Winfrey made no mention of the Broadway "Dreamgirls" when she featured the film cast on her show. The stage and screen versions both tell the story of a trio of African-American women singers in the 1960s similar to Motown Records' The Supremes. Holliday played the role of Effie White on stage, Hudson had the role on screen.

"I almost lost my own legacy because I did "Dreamgirls" over 20 years ago and they did it in 2006," Holliday said in a phone interview with The Herald-Sun from her home in Atlanta. "People thought that I had died or didn't even go back and mention there was Dreamgirls" on Broadway. Thank God for YouTube," she said. Holliday admits being a novice when it comes to technology. She has a MySpace page, but not her own Web site. She just got her first cell phone last month. But fans of "Dreamgirls" the movie learned about the Broadway version online.

"Young people rescued me through the Internet. With 'Dreamgirls,' I had to fight for my own legacy and they helped me do it. I would have lost everything," she said.

Holliday has had a long singing career and brings her reach-the-rafters voice to the Carolina Theatre Saturday as a "Spend the Holidays with Jennifer Holliday" benefit concert for Hayti Heritage Center. Durham saxophone player Marcus Anderson will join her on stage for two songs.

Holliday will perform a few Christmas songs as well as other songs from her catalog, and, of course, the "Dreamgirls" song. She always gets requests for it, but doesn't mind.

"It's my only hit -- it's what I'm famous for. Whatever you're known for, you're known for," she said. It's on her 2000 "Best of" CD along with songs like "I Am Changing," "Come Sunday," "Just Let Me Wait" and "Heart on the Line."

The singer's voice is as clear today as it ever was. A voice is an instrument, Holliday said, and has to be maintained and cared for. That means no drinking, no smoking, no partying, no swimming and even no dairy products. Singers know, she said, that cheese fosters mucus and can make your voice crack. Bread, too, she said.

Holliday moved to Atlanta earlier this year to improve the quality of her personal life, she said. She previously lived in New York. Atlanta has the best of both worlds, she said.

"Music has always been a staple here. It's here but not right in your face. You get the Southern warmth -- people here are so nice," Holliday said.

She grew up in Texas singing in a church choir. It taught her how to work with people. Theater taught her discipline. She learned about music and musicians from other people. She learned about jazz artists like Shirley Horn, Alberta Hunter and Ruth Brown, who she met. She also remembers meeting Aretha Franklin, who came to see Holliday in "Dreamgirls" and her first Broadway production, "Your Arms Too Short to Box With God," in 1980. Franklin was a smoker at the time, Holliday said, and signed a book of matches for her saying that she was amazing. Holliday still has the matchbook.

Holliday said that while she sometimes feels old, the young performers she works with don't make her feel that way. But she has noticed that they don't know the stuff she considers to be important jazz history. She doesn't blame them -- someone has to tell them, otherwise they won't know, she said.

For the same reason, Holliday doesn't fault Hudson for not appreciating the "Dreamgirls" legacy. The women sang "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" as a duet for the first time at the 2007 BET Awards.

When Holliday is not performing, she enjoys going to see other singers like Barbara Streisand, Anita Baker, Aretha Franklin, Natalie Cole and Shirley Bassey. She also likes new artists like singer Ledisi, who Holliday thinks has an incredible voice.