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Soul songstress Melba Moore<\/a>, the chart-topping Tony Award\u2013winning star, whose road to fame began in the 1960s, exudes a timeless beauty that is graceful and vibrant.<\/p>\n Now 80, Moore felt the time was right to tell her story. And so she did.<\/p>\n Her new memoir, \u201cThis Is It Marvelous\u2026 & Getting Better,\u201d due out on Amazon Books on Nov. 18, highlights her musical and theatrical careers while offering insight into her personal journey of trials and triumphs.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m a communicator,\u201d said Moore, who grew up in Newark. \u201cI want to convey my feelings, my observations, and a little bit about who I am.\u201d<\/p>\n While revealing, her book doesn\u2019t dwell on the challenges she faced in the mid-1990s after a failed marriage, which led to eviction, homelessness and bankruptcy.<\/p>\n \u201cI was actually physically put out, and I went to court to try to stay there, but I wasn\u2019t able to do that,\u201d she recalled. \u201cA friend helped me get welfare to try to pay my rent, but they did not want welfare recipients on Central Park South.\u201d<\/p>\n Salvation came in the form of a gospel theater tour in 1994 with \u201cMomma, I\u2019m Sorry,\u201d<\/a> which offered both work and emotional support.<\/p>\n \u201cThey stayed with me. They prayed with me. The presence of God was there,\u201d Moore said of the cast and crew.<\/p>\n Reflecting on her roots, Moore credits New Jersey with shaping her success and influencing her family life and education. Encouraged by her parents, Moore learned music early. She attended Newark\u2019s Arts High School and Montclair State Teachers College, later teaching music in Newark public schools.<\/p>\n Her vocal talent and ability to read music opened doors to commercials and backup singing, and helped her connect with other artists, including Valerie Simpson of Ashford & Simpson.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cIt was very hard to get into that area of the business,\u201d Simpson said, referring to work on commercials. \u201cMelba had a quality they needed. She could sing any kind of way and bring color and warmth to a commercial. She had a natural ability that just shone through.\u201d<\/p>\n Moore provided vocals for commercials, including for Contac cold medicine and Ford Motor Company, which led to opportunities on Broadway.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen they came scouting for \u2018Hair,\u2019 they heard us sing and asked us to audition,\u201d Simpson said. \u201cI didn\u2019t see myself as an actress, but Melba said yes and got the part, in a cast that included the late Diane Keaton. That was the start of her other career.\u201d<\/p>\n The role of Dionne in \u201cHair\u201d was a turning point for Moore, she added.<\/p>\n Moore went on to star in other productions, including \u201cPurlie,\u201d<\/a> an updated version of \u201cPurlie Victorious\u201d by Ossie Davis, which ran for 688 performances from 1970 to 1971. She played Lutiebelle Gussie Mae Jenkins, a role she deeply understood.<\/p>\n \u201cI enjoyed being her and would lapse into Southern dialects, sometimes leaving my director puzzled,\u201d she said. \u201cThe lady who raised me while my mother was away told me stories about picking cotton and slopping hogs. I lived, talked, and felt like she did. That\u2019s who Lutiebelle was, and that got me the Tony Award.\u201d<\/p>\n Moore\u2019s theatre success led to opportunities in the recording industry. For one of her traveling tours in the mid-70s, she auditioned backup musicians, selecting 16-year-old Ray Chew<\/a> from LaGuardia High School in Manhattan.<\/p>\n \u201cI left high school to go right on the road with her,\u201d said Chew, now the musical director for Dancing with the Stars.<\/a> \u201cThat job started my musical journey.\u201d<\/p>\n In the 1980s, Moore\u2019s hits included \u201cLove\u2019s Comin\u2019 at Ya\u201d<\/a> (1982), \u201cFalling<\/a>\u201d (1986), and \u201cA Little Bit More\u201d<\/a> (1986), all reaching the top 10 on various R&B and dance charts, cementing her status as a leading R&B artist.<\/p>\n In her book, Moore also reflects on her civil rights work alongside activists Dorothy Height<\/a>, the Rev. Jesse Jackson, and artist Stevie Wonder, as they advocated for Martin Luther King Jr.\u2019s birthday to be recognized as a national holiday.<\/p>\n She also recounts her recognition as an honoree at Oprah\u2019s 2005 Legends Ball<\/a>, which celebrated 25 women in the arts, entertainment and civil rights.<\/p>\n Moore\u2019s friend Simpson noted how difficult it is to stay in the music business.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are so many who started out with us, and I don\u2019t know what happened to them,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cMelba\u2019s work has longevity; it has strength and staying power. It isn\u2019t temporary. It carries real weight and meaning,\u201d Simpson added. \u201cYou can\u2019t last in this business unless what you do comes from the heart, and Melba always put her heart into her work. You could feel it in every note.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked about retirement, Moore insists she\u2019s not slowing down. She\u2019s still performing and will bring her one-woman musical play to theaters and arts centers, including the South Orange Performing Arts Center<\/a> on Feb. 1, 2026.<\/p>\n Her latest single, \u201cNo Filter,\u201d<\/a> a pulsing house track, captures her spirit perfectly:<\/p>\n \u201cYou get one life, fulfill your dreams, fly like an eagle, spread your wings. You can make a difference, let your voice be heard.\u201d<\/p>\n Read the original article on NJ.com<\/a>. Add NJ.com<\/a> as a Preferred Source by clicking here<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nThe road to success<\/h2>\n