Florence Ballard

 Florence Ballard (June 30, 1943 – February 22, 1976)

Ballard was an American singer and a founding member of the Motown vocal female group the Supremes. She sang on 16 top 40 singles with the group, including ten number-one hits. The group struggled in their early years with the label, releasing eight singles that failed to crack the Billboard Hot 100, giving them the nickname "no-hit Supremes". One track, "Buttered Popcorn", led by Ballard, was a regional hit in the Midwest, but still failed to chart. During a 1962 Motortown Revue tour, Ballard briefly replaced the Marvelettes' Wanda Young while she was on maternity leave. Before the release of their 1962 debut album, Meet the Supremes, Barbara Martin, who had replaced Betty McGlown a year before they signed to Motown, left the group. Ballard, Ross and Wilson remained a trio. After the hit success of 1963's "When the Love Light Starts Shining Through His Eyes", Diana Ross became the group's lead singer. Ballard expressed dissatisfaction with the group's direction throughout its successful period. She would also claim that their schedule had forced the group members to drift apart. Ballard blamed Motown Records for destroying the group dynamic by making Diana Ross the star. Struggling to cope with the label's demands and her own bout with depression, Ballard turned to alcohol for comfort, leading to arguments with her group members. In one example, she appeared at a performance inebriated and was sent back to Detroit. She was subsequently replaced and dropped from the group.

After being removed from the Supremes in 1967, Ballard tried an unsuccessful solo career with ABC Records before she was dropped from the label at the end of the decade. Ballard struggled with alcoholism, depression, and poverty for three years. Ballard eventually married her boyfriend, Thomas Chapman, on February 29, 1968. In July 1971, Ballard sued Motown for additional royalty payments she believed she was due to receive; she was defeated in court by Motown. Shortly afterwards, Ballard and her husband separated following several domestic disputes and Ballard's home was foreclosed. Ballard later entered the Betty Ford clinic and appeared to be recovering. On February 21, 1976, Ballard entered Mt. Carmel Mercy Hospital, complaining of numbness in her extremities. She died at 10:05 ET the next morning from cardiac arrest caused by a coronary thrombosis, age 32. Ballard is buried at Detroit Memorial Park Cemetery in Warren, Michigan.