Brenda Lee’s name may not be as recognizable as some of the other music stars from the 1960s but when you think of Christmas, you’ll know her song, and start humming her catchy tune, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.”
When Lee, now 78, first hit the stage, she wasn’t old enough to drive but her powerful vocals steered her “unprecedented international popularity” as the most successful female artist of the 1960s.
Lee, whose voice defied her diminutive stature at only 4 foot 9, became a fan favorite when she was only 12.
Brenda May Tarpley, born in 1944, got her start in the late 1940s, became huge in the 1950s, and over her career–that started before she left elementary school–she topped the charts 55 times, earning the title as the most successful female recording artist of the 1960s.
When Lee was only eight (according to Rolling Stone), her father, a construction worker, was killed at work and little Brenda–who then changed her last name to Lee–became the family’s primary provider.
Taking care of her younger brother, big sister, and mother–a cotton mill worker–was not a duty, but something she wanted to do. She said that she was thrilled when she made her first $20, so she could help her family: “Even at that young age, I saw that helped our life,” Lee said, adding “It put some food on the table. It helped, and I loved it.”
The Atlanta-born chanteuse, called a “pioneer of early rock and roll,” by the Georgia Encyclopedia, achieved “unprecedented international popularity in the 1960s.”
But, an incredibly humble human, Lee credits those who helped her achieve her dreams. When Christianity Today asked what she thinks about being a legend, Lee said “I don’t think of myself that way!” She continued, “I’m just a girl who’s been blessed to be doing what I’m doing, and there’s a lot of people who’ve sweated a lot of tears and put a lot of life’s work into me to be able to have my dream. So, if I’m a legend, then they’re legends, too.”
In 1956, the young girl joined country star Red Foley for a show at the Bell Auditorium near her home in Augusta, and she belted out “Jambalaya,” by Hank Williams.
She was then signed to appear on Foley’s Ozark Jubilee, a country music show, where millions of viewers fell in love with the sassy 12-year-old whose talent was developed well beyond her age.
In the same year, Lee signed with Decca Records, and the next year, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee, and fusing country with rhythm and blues–highlighted by her hiccupping vocals–she recorded early rockabilly classics like “BIGELOW 6-200,” “Little Jonah,” and “Let’s Jump the Broomstick.”
When asked if–when as a young girl–she was nervous performing in front of large crowds, she answered: “No, not really. Nobody ever told me to be nervous. The stage always felt like a hometown to me because I had been in front of people ever since I was 3 years old, singing to people. So it was a very comfortable spot for me.”
In 1957, Lee earned the nickname “Little Miss Dynamite” for her pint-sized powerhouse recording of the song “Dynamite,” and in 1958, fans heard “Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree,” a genre and generation-crossing holiday standard, released when she was only 13.
“I knew it was magical,” she told Rolling Stone.
Over the next couple of years, she charted with hits like “Sweet Nuthin’s,” “All Alone Am I,” and “Fool #1.”
Most of her songs, however, contradicted her experience as a young girl. Her mother didn’t let her date and she graduated high school not understanding the heartbreak of young love.
She was only 16 when she said “Love could be so cruel” in the song “I’m Sorry” and only 16 when she said “I want his lips to kiss me” in the song “I Want to be Wanted,” both back-to-back hits when she was still in school.
And when she turned 18, she met Ronnie Shacklett, whom she’s now been happily married to for 60 years.
Life on the road for Lee as a youngster had its difficulties. She celebrated her 12th birthday in Las Vegas and speaking with the Las Vegas Journal, Lee explained her loneliness.
“Of course, I wasn’t even allowed to walk through a casino, I was so young. So I didn’t even know what a casino looked like. They took me into the kitchen, then into the showroom. And then when my show was over, I was brought back out through the kitchen and back up to my room. Children weren’t allowed … in the casino area.” She continued, “There wasn’t anything to do in Vegas for a kid. The most fun I had was on the stage.”
Speaking on what she missed out on as a child, the award-winning Lee said, “Many times, I yearned to be with my friends rather than be out there on the road.”
Turns out she made new friends on the road, like with the music group that opened for her at a 1962 show in Germany. “I hung out with John,” she says effortlessly, speaking of John Lennon. “He was extremely intelligent, very acerbic with his jokes, just a gentle person. When I found out that they later said they were fans of my music, I was just floored.”
Brad Pitt Finds New Love After Heartbreaking Divorce At 60, And You Might Recognize Her
At one point in time, Brad Pitt might well have been considered the most eligible bachelor on Earth. But no more.
Fans have known for some time now about his romance with Ines de Ramon; the pair are said to have planned to celebrated his milestone 60th birthday with a low-key week.
According to PEOPLE, Pitt wasn’t of a mind to go overboard with the celebrations after ushering in his sixth decade on Monday. It surely says quite a bit about his commitment to De Ramon, then, that he wanted to spend his time with her.
Last month, a source is said to have spoken to PEOPLE and described De Ramon, ex-wife of actor Paul Wesley, as “Brad’s first proper relationship since the divorce” from Angelina Jolie.
Indeed, the Troy star is said to have started introducing the 32-year-old as his girlfriend.
“He introduces [Ines] as his girlfriend,” an insider PEOPLE. “It’s great to see him in a good place. Ines makes him very happy.”
It’s been a rocky road back to happiness for Pitt, whose marriage to Angelina Jolie ended in a tumultuous separation, the wounds of which still don’t appear to have fully healed.
Famously dubbed ‘Brangelina’ in the media, the A-listers fell in love on the set of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, embarking on a romance that stole headlines all over the world.
In 2016, however, Jolie filed for divorce, citing irreconcilable differences. She also moved to request sole custody of the pairs six children, Maddox, Pax, Shiloh, Zahara, Vivienne and Knox.
On January 21, 2021, Angelina Jolie emailed Brad Pitt, an email which has since then made public. In the email, she mentions that she writes “with a heavy heart” to inform Pitt of her decision to sell Miraval, “a business that is centered around alcohol.” This is perhaps a reference to the now infamous plane event where an intoxicated Pitt “choked” one of their children and then “struck another in the face” before he poured alcohol on her and the kids.
As recently as October did Brad find his name in the headlines for a less than savory reason, after an old Instagram story surfaced wherein his adopted son Pax had labeled him a “f****ing awful human being”.
Pax, who was 16 at the time, expressed his displeasure with his father and warned him “the truth will come to light someday.”
“You time and time and again prove yourself to be a terrible and despicable person,” Pax wrote over an image of his father accepting the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
“You have no consideration or empathy toward your four youngest children who tremble in fear when in your presence.
“You will never understand the damage you have done to my family because you’re incapable of doing so.
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