As everyone continues to mourn the death of legend David Bowie, the music world celebrated the life of another late music star - Natalie Cole. The singer lost her life on New Year's Eve and was remembered by music's biggest stars during a touching ceremony in Los Angeles on Monday.
The star-studded funeral was attended by music icons, including Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Gladys Knight and Smokey Robinson, while Natalie's good friend, Chaka Khan, performed to those who were present at the West Angeles Church of God in Christ.
© Photo: Getty ImagesNatalie Cole passed away on 31 December 2015
"I feel so blessed to have called you my friend, and my buddy, and many times my confidante," said singer Smokey Robinson when speaking at the funeral. "You are so real and down to Earth. Now I have to say you’re so real and up to heaven."
Natalie will be laid to rest alongside her parents, singers Nat King Cole and Maria Hawkins Ellington, her sister Cookie and her adopted brother Kelly at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale.
© Photo: Getty ImagesStevie Wonder spoke at Natalie's funeral on Monday
Known for Grammy-winning hits such as This Will Be and the classic duet Unforgettable which she performed with her father, the legend died at the age of 65 from congestive heart failure in Los Angeles on 31 December 2015.
Natalie, who always had a love for music, did not begin performing in public until after she graduated from university in 1972. She began by performing R&B songs in clubs until she was approached about recording an album by Chuck Jackson and Marvin Yancy, who she ended up marrying.
© Photo: Getty ImagesLionel Richie also spoke at the icon's memorial service
She was quickly signed to Capitol Records, the same label as her father, and released her first album in 1975, Inseparable. The album's lead single, This Will Be, became an instant hit, which she won Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for.
She leaves behind a son, Robert Yancy, from her first marriage to producer Marvin Yancy, and her younger twin sisters Timolin and Casey.
