Rochelle Fleming First Choice death, Digi Mart USA News (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania): Rochelle Fleming, lead singer and founder of the 1970s girl group First Choice, has died at the age of 72.
Fleming’s passing was confirmed by a post on her official Instagram page, written by her manager George Correia. The post said she passed away on November 5 at the age of 72 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
“It is with a heavy heart to share the passing of Rochelle Fleming-Finney. She was the founder of the R&B group, First Choice.
She brought light, laughter and love to the world. Services to celebrate her life will be announced at a later date.”
First Choice began singing in high school as the Debonettes. The group consisted of Fleming, Annette Guest and Wardel Piper, and its name was later changed to First Choice.
Guest and Piper later left the group, and there have been various personnel changes over the years.
Among the group’s biggest hits are “Armed and Extremely Dangerous,” their first charted single, which rose to No. 11 on the Billboard R&B chart, No. 28 on the Hot 100, and No. 19 in the United Kingdom in 1973. The disco hits “Smarty Pants” and “Dr Love” and the classic “Let No Man Put Asunder,” later covered by Mary J Blige in the 1990s, also became well known.
Album cuts “I Love You More Than Before” and “A Boy Named Junior” were also very popular on local radio, including stations such as JBC-FM and RJR 94 FM.
