Susaye Greene
Susaye Greene is an
African-American singer, noted for being the last official member to join
Motown girl group
The Supremes, remaining in the group during its final year of existence from
1976 to
1977.
Early Life and career
Born in
Los Angeles, she began her professional career at the age of 12. After moving to
New York City as a teenager, she appeared in various commercials and attended and graduated from the
New York City High School of Performing Arts (made famous in the musical
Fame).
Prior to joining the Supremes, Greene sang with
Ray Charles'
Raelettes, and
Stevie Wonder's Wonderlove. In
1973, she sang lead as a guest vocalist on New Birth's hit "Until It's Time for You to Go" (a cover of
Buffy Sainte-Marie's song). A successful
singer and
songwriter as well, Greene has written hit records for
Michael Jackson,
Deniece Williams, and many others.
Greene was a member of the
Supremes from
1976 to
1977, and performed on their last two albums,
High Energy and
Mary, Scherrie & Susaye. Working alongside original member Mary Wilson and the group's final lead vocalist, the talented and attractive Scherrie Payne, Susaye quickly found her niche in the group and amongst the groups legions of fans. With Susaye onboard the Supremes were better than ever technically, attributable to her five-octive range, which added a new dimension to the group's live act. Susaye took lead on 'He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother', in the group's live shows, which never failed to garner a standing ovation.
After The Supremes
In
1979, two years after the Supremes disbanded, Greene recorded a duet album with fellow former Supreme
Scherrie Payne entitled
Partners under the name "Scherrie & Susaye." She also hosted her own
cable television show,
Hollywood Hot, and continued writing for various artists.
While touring
England in
1984 with Stevie Wonder, Greene met her present husband in
London and relocated there. In
1986, she sang lead on
jazz saxophonist Courtney Pine's single "Children of the Ghetto". She signed with
Ian Levine's Motorcity label, based in the
United Kingdom, in
1989. She released two solo singles on Motorcity - "Stop, I Need You Now" (
1990) and her own version of
Deniece Williams' hit "Free" (
1991, which she co-wrote). At Motorcity, she also recorded several duets with
Billy Eckstine, including "It's Impossible."
Solo Albums
Around the turn of the century, Greene moved back to the States, and in
2002, she finally released her first solo album,
No Fear Here. Two singles and a video were released to critical acclaim. Greene penned most of the album herself.
Susaye Greene released her second solo album,
Brave New Shoes, in
2005.
Presence In The Online Artistic Community
Susaye Greene is also a member of the world's largest online art community,
deviantART. She joined deviantART on Sept. 17, 2004 under the pseudonym "supremextreme". Her deviantART page can be viewed
here.
On Sept. 21, 2005, Susaye was featured on deviantART's on-site chat network, "
dAmn", for one of the community's regularly sponsored "Featured Chats". She interacted with members of the deviantART community-at-large, answering questions about her life, career, inspirations, motivations, and her time on the art site itself.
Greene continues to be an active member on deviantART and is preparing 3d images of her Supremextreme character for her first short animated feature film. She is planning to tour the UK in early 2006.
