A SISTER'S TRIBUTE

Former Five Star singer Deniece Pearson reveals how the sudden loss of her brother Stedman inspired her new songs

- NICKY MORRIS

If anyone knows how to make a comeback, it's the British singer Deniece Pearson. The 57-year-old, who shot to stardom as a teenager in the Eighties pop group Five Star, tells HELLO! that she's determined to "live life to the fullest" after learning of the death of her first boyfriend and former fiancé, David, as well as suffering the devastating passing of her brother and former bandmate, Stedman Pearson, who died in March.

"It puts life into perspective. Whatever you really want to do, just go for it. Whether you fail or not, just pick yourself up and go again," says Deniece, who only found out in 2024 about David's death two years ago. "It was a very big blow to me."

The singer is speaking to us from her home in Berkshire, not far from where she spent much of her childhood living in a mansion built by her father, the music producer Buster Pearson, which featured a recording studio for when Whitney Houston and Madonna were in town.

She credits her father for the stratospheric success of Five Star, the Jackson 5-inspired group that comprised lead singer Deniece and her four siblings, Doris, Stedman, Delroy and Lorraine. They sold more than 15 million records in the Eighties and became the first black group to win a Brit Award.

Here, she opens up about her tight-knit family, a spontaneous performance with her sister Lorraine and how grief was the catalyst for her new music.

Deniece, what inspired your new single and album?