Gloria Gaynor article - Gina Roberts-Grey

Cover Story
Gloria
Gaynor
I Will
Survive
and
Thrive
H
ow the Queen of the
Discos Overcame OA
A
fter decades on tour in the U.S.
and Europe, Gloria Gaynor,
the “Queen of the Discos,” is
prepping for her second act: teaching. The vivacious singer, actress and
author is, at 61 years old, back in
school and hitting the psychology
books. And she’s got a purpose: to one
day open a healing and recreational center
in Los Angeles. The famous singer believes it’s
important to teach teen parents life skills. She says,
“I want to teach them how to survive.”
Gloria is the right woman for the job. She knows a lot
about surviving. It’s the message of one of her iconic, charttopping songs, “I Will Survive.” Still played in nightclubs
and on the radio, the song is rated number 97 on Billboard’s
“Greatest Songs of All Time.” When released, it sold 14 million copies and earned her a Grammy Award.
Just as the song has survived the test of time, so too
has Gloria. She’s cleared near-tragic obstacles, including
a bad fall onstage and severe osteoarthritis (OA). For
a time, OA prevented her from dancing—even walking. “My pain put me on the sidelines. I couldn’t dance
or participate in activities with family and friends,” she
says. “It was a horrible way to live.”
“Now I can
exercise,
dance and
do just about
everything.”
Following her bliss
But Gloria still possessed her long-standing passion for
singing. That passion reaches back to the time when she
was one of six children growing up in a cramped flat
in Newark, NJ. Gloria says she had always dreamed of
becoming a singer. “There was always music
in our house,” she says. “I listened to the radio
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Cover Story
or records by Nat King Cole and Sarah
Vaughn.” She brought that passion to
school, where she joined both the choir
and the glee club. These experiences
proved to be excellent training grounds.
After high school, Gloria began singing
with house bands in local bars and clubs.
Soon, she was on the road, performing
and attending auditions. She caught the
eye of legendary producer Clive Davis,
who signed her to the Columbia record
label. In 1975, she recorded her first disco
hit, “Never Can Say Goodbye.” By the
next year, the National Association of
Discotheque Disc Jockeys crowned her
disco queen. She fulfilled her childhood
dream—and then some.
Taking a fall
Two years later, Gloria took a serious spill
onstage. It left her temporarily paralyzed
from the waist down—and threatened
to derail her career. Emergency surgery
repaired her spine. But she spent months
in a brace that reached from her hips to
her underarms. Undaunted and still in
recovery, Gloria recorded “I Will Survive.”
It was an instant hit. The singer says she’s
not surprised by the song’s staying power.
She and her former husband, music publisher Linwood Simon, felt the lyrics were
timeless. As she says, “It was relatable.”
In 1995, Gloria, then 45, faced
another obstacle. While on tour, she
was stopped short by pain in her knees.
“When I woke up, I felt stiff. I had
twinges of pain climbing stairs,” she
recalls. The pain steadily increased—
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and lingered. “I started feeling uncomfortable all the time—especially if I was
active.” Despite the pain, Gloria didn’t
seek medical attention; she hoped the
pain would go away on its own.
Looking for relief
The pain in her knees became so bad
that Gloria went to her doctor. The
singer was shocked to learn that she
had osteoarthritis, a degenerative joint
disease that causes the cartilage that
connects muscles to bones to break
down. This form of arthritis can occur
in almost any joint, but often affects
weight-bearing hips and knees.
“My mother and grandmother both
had osteoarthritis so my diagnosis
shouldn’t have been a surprise, yet it
was,” she recalls (see “Who gets Knee
OA?”). “I thought I was invincible.” u
Who gets knee OA?
By age 85, many Americans may
develop symptoms of osteoarthritis (OA) in at least one knee,
according to a recent study by
the Centers for Disease Control
and Prevention. And nearly two in
three obese adults will develop the
condition at some point.
Over the next 14 years, Gloria tried
a number of treatments, but found only
short-term relief. Her doctor suggested
a knee replacement. Gloria thought
she was too young for that. Instead, she
became resigned to living with pain and
watching life pass her by. “I couldn’t
exercise,” she says, “and even walking
became terribly painful.” In 2009, Gloria
reconsidered her doctor’s suggestion and
underwent replacement surgery.
“The therapy and rehab were grueling,” she recalls. “Rebuilding the muscles that had atrophied [lost strength
and size] was extremely painful—they
didn’t want to work.” But within a year,
the singer had regained most of her
mobility. “Now I can exercise, dance
and do just about everything,” she says.
Although medicine is controlling the
Genetics plays a big part in
whether or not the condition will
strike. Typically, you inherit your
body—and your joint structure.
If members of your family have
struggled with knee OA, chances
are greater that you will, too. But
other factors, including weight, age
and any joint trauma you’ve experienced, may also play a role.
pain in her right knee, her doctor says
she may need that knee replaced, too.
A perennial classic
Gloria’s popularity continues to flourish.
In 2000, she penned an autobiography, I Will Survive (St. Martin’s Press).
In March 2001, her single, “Just Keep
Thinking About You,” hit No. 1. And the
song “I Will Survive” is featured on the
soundtracks of more than a half dozen
major motion pictures, including Man
on the Moon. In September 2005, Gloria
enjoyed another crowning moment. She
and her iconic tune were inducted into
the Dance Music Hall of Fame. With
such accolades under her belt, she continues to perform. And she let’s nothing—including OA—stop her.
—Gina Roberts-Grey
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