Patti drops her "Pearls": the diva who moved from singing to writing her memoirs and a cookbook now gives us inspirational reading. (Cover Story).

Take soul siren Patti LaBelle. Long before Patricia Louise "Patsy" Holte became one of rhythm-and-blues' most beloved vocal heroines, she was an introverted child who was afraid to be heard. Born in Philly on October 24, 1944, Patti began to crack her shell after finding solace in her church choir.

For those of us who've been blessed to witness one of Patti's electrifying and animated performances, it's unfathomable that this Grammy-toting chanteuse could have ever known a moment of silence. Whether it's the thrill of her four-octave range when she is belting a soulful rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" or the all-the-way-live histrionics when she kicks off her no-less-than-five-inch pumps, drops and rolls around the stage like an uninhibited rock star, she's always communicating with her fans and never holds back.

Fortunately for her legion of fans, LaBelle's vocal prowess transcended the pulpit and penetrated our souls. She was no longer a caged songbird. Through her 30-year plus career, we've lived vicariously through her music--crying, rejoicing, partying and cheering, Go on girl! With 50-plus albums, numerous accolades, TV shows (1997's Out All Night), plays (the 1981-82 musical Your Arms Are Too Short to Box with God) and two previous books (Don't Block the Blessings: Revelations of a Lifetime, Putnam Publishing Group, 1996, ISBN 1-57322039-6 and LaBelle Cuisine: Recipes to Sing About, Broadway Books, 1999, ISBN 0-767-90314-5) LaBelle has always had a vice to speak to various genres and audiences. Now her third literary effort, Patti's Pearls: Lessons in Living Genuinely, Joyfully, Generously, a self-help inspirational guide she penned with her friend and confidante, Ebony magazine writer Laura Randolph Lancaster, may very well garner the soulstress a new moniker as motivational speaker. But Pearls' appeal is its grass-roots development--hand-picked musings passed on from generation to generation by LaBelle's philosophizing family and friends. (See review, page 35.)

The success of her tell-all autobiography, which won an NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work, and also her delectable cookbook (both co-authored by Lancaster), has definitely served as a successful blueprint for Pearls. And while LaBelle's previous memoir set an impressive precedent followed by celebrity authors like Natalie Cole and others (see "Natalie Cole Owns Her Life" BIBR, November/December 2000), how does a novice singer who communicates effortlessly through song, fare as a scribe?

"What's so great about Patti is that she doesn't hold anything back," says coauthor Lancaster, 40. "She does the same thing that she does on the stage and that is give you everything." At 57, LaBelle hasn't slacked one bit. In addition to releasing her newest book, she nabbed the Lena Home Award at this year's Lady of Soul Awards. And while Patti admits that she's a singer first, she has a new found respect for the art of writing. "I'm an instant gratification queen" laughs LaBelle. "I want things to happen right now and with books you don't get that and it's nerve-wracking for me."

It took Patti and Lancaster months to sift through hundreds of wise sayings and to finally compile nearly 40 of them. "We chose the ones that meant the most to her," says Lancaster. Her words speak to a gamut of music lovers from teeny-boppers to grown folks and the gay community. "I read Patti's autobiography and it was so real!" says Paul Johnson, a stockbroker by day and cross-dresser by night. "There were so many things I'd been hiding from my childhood and after reading her book I found the courage to face my fears"

And while Patti's stories touch the masses, she gives props to oral historian and friend Lancaster, whom she met in the 1980s when Lancaster served as an editor at Ebony magazine. "After meeting Lancaster and reading her work, I knew she was perfect for me," says LaBelle. "She writes like I speak, and I wouldn't work with anyone else." Lancaster reports, "When we get together, I just press record and Patti starts speaking. Sometimes we go in very painful places and we just have to stop. What she shares is so great and real"

Pearls' down-to-earth approach shares valuable life lessons without reprimanding, but with the love and care of a close girlfriend. "My book is an easy read, and it's just basic and makes sense" says Patti matter-of-factly. "That's really what it's all about--being able to see how basic life can be by alleviating a lot of pain."

Lancaster says the true secret to Patti's success as a celebrity author has less to do with her than Patti's distinct voice. "This is not a criticism, but a lot of celeb-books don't do well because people can sense truth and authenticity. Patti isn't superficial and it's her realness that people relate to."

But Patti's down-home realness wasn't always well received. In her autobiography she talks about how everyone from Dionne Warwick to Diana Ross wanted her to "tone down" her singing. "Here I was singing my heart out, just being Patti and I was crushed." Luckily, books call for solo efforts and Patti doesn't have to apologize for the intensity she delivers through words. "You hold stuff in and it becomes a burden, and it's not healthy," reflects Patti about suppressing her feelings as a young adult. "But as I became a grown woman I learned that the truth will set you free. So I don't hold back anymore, because you'll find that a lot of people have gone through the same things and you're not alone"

Patti has never been alone. She grew up in a place where "there were no strangers. Everyone had a link to everyone else. People were connected. Neighbors watched out for neighbors." It is this upbringing that has given her a unique sense of community and the ability to share with so many of us through her music and her books. LaBelle's spirit is free and has been for some time. It is free to love, free to give, free to accept any and all things good and bad. This is her pearl of wisdom, living life to the fullest-genuinely, joyfully and generously.

Patti's Pearls:
Lessons in Living Genuinely,
Joyfully, Generously
by Patti LaBelle and Laura
Randolph Lancaster
Warner Books, October 2001
$19.95, ISBN 0-466-52794-7

Growing up can involve hard-knock lessons, How often did your parents, friends or elders try to share words of wisdom that could have spared you unnecessary pain, shame and drama? Too many times to keep count. Like most of us during our you-can't tell-me-nothing-because-I-think-I-know-everything youth, Patti LaBelle can attest to letting good advice fall on deaf ears or as grown folks say, being "hard-headed." Now the Grammy Award-winning singer and actress unselfishly shares her pearls of wisdom in her latest book, Patti's Pearls: Lessons in Living Genuinely, Joyfully, Generously.

Pearls cleverly and succintly documents the proverbial musings of LaBelle's family and friends coupled with personal anecdotes that she's come to abide by. Its sister-friendly delivery offers practical and sound advice about love, faith, friendship, self-image and more. A few of Pearls' best hand-me-down philosophies include sayings like: "Many a false step is made by standing still." "You don't need a certain number of friends, just a number of friends you can be certain of." "Accept everything you are and nothing you are not." "Barbie is an image, not a goal." And, "Know God, know peace; no God, no peace." The most refreshing thing about this self-help book is that the messages are pretty self-explanatory, and Patti only enhances its palpability by divulging some of her most intimate experiences (many of which she revealed in her 1996 autobiography, Don't Block The Blessings: Revelations of a Lifetime), without sounding like a condescending parent.

Patti LaBelle, the singer, has always had a legion of fans, primarily because of the raw realness she delivers through her music and stage performances. Patti's Pearls promises LaBelle devotees the same--her candor and down-to-earth voice deftly captures life's invaluable lessons. With these pearls of wisdom, or more simply, timeless truths, LaBelle shares her most valuable lesson: "The ultimate secret of happiness: to grow wise before you grow old."

Kenya N. Byrd is the entertainment editor at essence.com

Kenya N. Byrd is an entertainment editor at essence.com. She has written for Essence, Vibe, TV Guide and TV Guide Ultimate Cable. She examines the pearls of wisdom in Patti LaBelle's latest book on page 32.