Nedra Talley Ross, a founding member of the seminal girl group the Ronettes, has died. The group’s official social media accounts confirmed the news on Sunday, April 26. Ross was the final living original Ronette—her cousins and bandmates, sisters Estelle Bennett and Ronnie Spector, predeceased her in 2009 and 2022, respectively. Ross was 80.
“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of Nedra Talley Ross’ passing. She was a light to those who knew and loved her,” the trio’s statement read. “As a founding member of The Ronettes, along with her beloved cousins Ronnie and Estelle, Nedra’s voice, style and spirit helped define a sound that would change music. Her contribution to the group’s story and their defining influence will live forever.”
Born in Manhattan in 1946, Ross began singing with Bennett and Spector as a little girl, performing covers at local sock hops and bar mitzvahs first as the Darling Sisters, then as Ronnie and the Relatives and, finally, as the Ronettes. Ross credited her mother, Susie Talley, with encouraging her to perform and instilling the importance of family. “Part of the reason I believe the Ronettes continued and we were as successful as we were, is because we held each other’s hand when we walked out on stage, and we believed that God was watching what we did,” Ross shared in an interview with Cleveland Digital in February.
The trio signed with Columbia subsidiary Colpix Records in 1961, but struggled to make their mark at the label. In 1963, they auditioned for Philles Records and producer Phil Spector with a version of Frankie Lymon’s “Why Do Fools Fall In Love.” Rapt, Spector took a special interest in the Ronettes—he and Ronnie would eventually get married—and helped craft their breakthrough 1963 single “Be My Baby,” which reached No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Although the Ronettes released just one proper album, 1964’s Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes, they were behind hits like “Baby I Love You,” “(The Best Part of) Breaking Up,” “Do I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain.” The group parted ways after a 1967 European tour, in part amidst Phil Spector’s increasingly dictatorial oversight of their releases. (Ross has also said she left the group due to a desire to make Christian music she felt the Ronettes didn’t alot room for.) Following the split, the trio spent decades fighting Spector over unpaid royalties and income—a judge ordered Spector to pay the group $2.6 million in 2000. In 2007, he was arrested and convicted for shooting and killing the actress Lana Clarkson.
After the Ronettes disbanded, Ross continued to release music solo. She released an album of contemporary Christian music, Full Circle, in 1978, plus an array of singles and a collaborative 1977 record with her church’s pastor, Ted Sandquist. With the Ronettes, Ross was also inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007. Ross was married to the DJ and television personality Scott Ross from 1967 until his death in 2023.
