I Will Survive

Gloria Gaynor, the "Queen of Disco," tells her story of stardom, despair, and finally, salvation.

Her meteoric rise to fame in the mid-1970s was nothing short of phenomenal, and hits poured forth that pushed her to the top of the charts, including "Honey Bee," "I Got You Under My Skin," "Never Can Say Goodbye," and the song that has immortalized her, "I Will Survive," which became a #1 international hit. With that song, Gloria Gaynor heralded the rise of disco, which became synonymous with life in the fast lane—the sweaty bodies at Studio 54, the lines of cocaine, the indescribable feeling that you could always be at the top of your game and never come down.

But down she came after her early stardom, and problems followed in its wake including the death of her mother, whose love had anchored the young singer, and constant battles with weight, drugs, and alcohol. While her fans always imagined her to be rich, her personal finances collapsed due to poor management, and while many envied her, she felt completely empty inside. In the early 1980s, sustained by her marriage to music publisher Linwood Simon, Gloria took three years off and reflected upon her life. She visited churches and revisited her mother's old Bible. Discovering the world of gospel, she made a commitment to Christ. In this faith-filled autobiography, she tells the story of how she survived—and thrived.

© 2014 St. Martin's Press (Ebook): 9781466865952

Release date

Ebook: 11 March 2014