Patti LaBelle on Thanksgiving Traditions, Her Tour and Faith: ‘God Got Me!’ (EXCLUSIVE)
The singer talks about her stress-free cooking hacks and thriving at age 80
Patti LaBelle, the iconic singer known as the “Godmother of Soul,” grandmother of three, cookbook author and head of her own food empire is currently on tour and has a new album 8065 coming out next year. She shares with Woman’s World as our cover girl (get your copy here!) what she’ll make for Thanksgiving this year (yes, she cooks it all from scratch herself!) and the powerful force behind her six decades in music.
Woman’s World: You created your food line Patti’s Good Life in 2008 starting out with hot sauces which has expanded to a large variety of prepared dishes and desserts. Your sweet potato pie went viral in 2015 and sold out in stores across the country. Some have called it the Patti Pie Phenomenon. This is a pie you and your family have been making for years, right?
Patti LaBelle: Yes, I stayed in the kitchen with my mother and my grandmother when they cooked. My father also cooked well. I learned from them how to make so many things. The main one was this sweet potato pie. This is my mom’s and my grandmother’s recipe. When I started making it, my sisters and everyone who tasted it loved it. I made a little adjustment, adding lemon zest to the crust and a little more salt to pop it up, and everybody said, “Why don’t you put that on the market?”
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WW: You’ve written how memories are rooted in these recipes. What role have these recipes taken on in your life?
PL: My late sisters, Barbara, Vivian and Jackie, are in my thoughts when I’m cooking. I’m just hoping that they will be proud of me. Jackie made the best red velvet cake. I learned that from her. When they died, I was singing only. So after they passed on, that’s when my cooking became a part of my life.
WW: What will be on your table this Thanksgiving?
PL: I cook everything for Thanksgiving. I make the macaroni and cheese, the brisket, the branzino, the kale greens and string beans. My son, Zuri, makes the turkey. I don’t cook the night before. Everybody can see me cooking the day of Thanksgiving. They’ll be watching the game or something and then they’ll say, “Oh gosh, she’s making that by hand.” A lot of people think because I say that I cook, they don’t believe that I really cook everything. It’s a surprise to my friends who come over and say, “Oh, wow, she did make that by hand.”
WW: Do you have any hacks or time-saving tips?
PL: I guess the only way I could say it is the way I do it, but that’s not for everybody. I just don’t let things pile up, like washing clothes and making sure that they don’t stay in the hamper too long. I clean as I go. I like to organize. I’m a cleaning fanatic. I love that clean smell after it’s all done and seeing the shine on top of the counters. Just not seeing dust on the lampshades and the blinds. I am pretty OCD when it comes to cleaning.
WW: The 8065 tour is named for your age and how many years you’ve been in the music business. How has the tour been and how are you feeling now that you’ve reached that milestone birthday?
PL: I feel great. 80 doesn’t mean it’s over. Most people think when you turn 50 that life is stopping. But it seems the older I get, the more I do and just creating all the time and recording. I haven’t had an R&B album out in about 20 years. At 80, I seem to be doing more than I did when I was 50 which is a blessing. There’s a lot more for me to do. There’s a lot more things to come my way. And I’m not settling at 80 saying “this is it” because this is not. There’s much more in life for me, much more.
WW: Where do you get your strength?
PL: God. It’s all about somebody bigger than you and me. I always say God got me. I mean for me to be doing this this way and doing it as long as I’ve been doing it, it’s a blessing from God.
WW: Do you have some tips that help you live such a vibrant, active life?
PL: I’m trying my best to eat much better. No fried foods if possible. No pizza. Instead of ice cream I would have an apple. I don’t do what I used to do. It was hard for me to kick most of those habits. I’m doing much better by eating better things for my body, by not frying the chicken and instead sauteing it. Eating salads and exercise. Walking around with my little dog, getting in the pool. All those things are helping me stay stronger.
WW: In the mid-90s, you gave a special performance for Coretta Scott King singing “Somewhere Over The Rainbow.” What did that performance mean to you?
PL: That was one of the most moving performances I’ve ever done. I felt as though I was flying at the end of that song. I never felt that any other time. After I did that for Coretta, it’ll never be done like that again. God had me. God had me going. It was one of the most memorable ones. It was a God moment. I felt as though I was levitating and it had something to do with somebody bigger than you and I. I think Coretta also felt it. It was just a special night. And I never can explain things that are special. They just happen.
WW: What brings you joy in your life?
PL: To see someone treat someone better than they’ve been treated most of their life. A lot of people grow up thinking that they’re nothing. And a lot of people will make that person continue to think that they’re nothing. So one kind person might come to you and say, “I see you. I understand you. I feel you and you are special.” It just makes me feel good to see people treat people good and with respect.
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