Born: Jan. 23, 1948 in Oakland, California
Bio: Anita Marie Pointer is an original member of the singing group the Pointer Sisters. Pointer’s parents were Arkansas natives and the family traveled by car almost yearly from California to Arkansas to visit her grandparents. Usually, the trip was related to her father’s ministry. As a child, Pointer loved Arkansas so much that she did not want to leave one year, so her mother allowed her to stay in Prescott with her grandparents to attend fifth grade. She went back to Arkansas again for seventh grade and tenth grade. Pointer still owns the land on which sat the two-story house her grandfather built.
Pointer and her sisters began singing gospel in their father’s church, the West Oakland Church of God. Before long, their interest in music expanded and proved too strong for their parents to corral. The Pointer Sisters were the first Black female group ever to perform at the Grand Ole Opry, and their song Fairytale won the sisters their first Grammy Award in 1975.
The Pointer Sisters are the recipients of many music awards, including three Grammys and three American Music Awards. They have five gold records, one platinum record and one multi-platinum record. They were presented with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994. In 1998, Anita Pointer was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame.
You can learn more about the life of Anita Pointer at the Encyclopedia of Arkansas.