Dionne Warwick continues to prove that pettiness is not just a young person’s sport, as her witty presence on X, formerly known as Twitter, has drawn attention to an old industry feud.
The legendary artist renewed interest in claims that the late U.K. entertainer Cilla Black hijacked Warwick’s singing style and songs to pave a path for her own career after being endorsed by The Beatles in the early 1960s.
The decades-old spat resurfaced when one of the New Jersey native’s fans tweeted, “I just found out the ‘Surprise Surprise’ lady (Cilla Black) stole a bunch of songs from @dionnewarwick back in the day including Anyone who had a heart.”
Warwick seemed to confirm the allegation when she responded with the viral meme of Black singing the theme song to the British “Surprise Surprise,” which she also hosted.
One user rejoiced in the “Alice” actress’ response. “This isn’t shade, this is an eclipse tell ’em, Mama Dionne!” they wrote. The iconic rock-era vocalist was a muse of composer Burt Bacharach when his career began 60 years ago.
Several of Bacharach’s top-performing songs, like Naked Eyes’ “Always Something There to Remind Me,” The Strangers’ “Walk on By,” and Gene’s “I Say A Little Prayer,” to name a few, were each original recordings of the songstress. Some even topped music charts before they were covered by U.K. artists who would ultimately gain recognition for the songs.
“Commercial touch.” Wow, a very racist of her to say! Ms. Dionne Warrick’s song was an international hit!! She was the world’s first Black crossover Pop superstar! This yt woman stole her song, and thought she made it better when she did NOT!
— 𝙱𝚎𝚌𝚌𝚊 ⚡️ (@MJFINESSELOVER) December 7, 2023
Last year, Warwick told The Mirror in an exclusive interview that she was not a fan of every artist who catapulted to fame off of her work. One of the individuals is Black.
“I don’t blame Cilla. Over the years, I came to realize she hadn’t been making the decision about what to sing. So I’ve almost forgiven her. Not completely, but almost. And she was a nice woman… really cute,” said the then-81-year-old.
Black, who died at age 72 in August 2015, famously used Warwick’s “Anyone Who Had A Heart” to land a hit in 1965. Prior to their fallout over the track, the women shared a friendship that remained fractured. “My real complaint was the treatment of the song wasn’t similar to mine. It was identical. If I’d sneezed, she would have done too. In other words, they copied,” she said.
In a resurfaced interview, Black claimed that Warwick’s version needed a “commercial touch” and that “Dionne was dead choked and she’s never forgiven me to this day.”
A fan catching up to the feud present day tweeted, “‘Commercial touch.’ Wow, a very racist of her to say! Ms. Dionne Warrick’s song was an international hit!! She was the world’s first Black crossover Pop superstar! This yt woman stole her song, and thought she made it better when she did NOT!”
Both women, along with several other artists, would go on to record their own versions of the song “Alfie,” though Warwick’s rendition was the only one to gain widespread notoriety. In 2016, she planned to reveal even more details about her “nemesis” in a stalled movie based on her 2010 book, “My Life as I See It: An Autobiography.”
Warwick’s cultural and musical influence is still observed as her work continues to be sampled. Most recently, Doja Cat sampled “Walk On By” for her chart-topping song, “Paint The Town Red.”
