Country Music Legend Helen Cornelius Dead at 83

Country music icon Helen Cornelius died Saturday at age 83, her official Facebook fan page confirmed.

Cornelius was born on Dec. 6, 1941, to Joseph and Lu Elsie Johnson and grew up with her seven siblings on a Missouri farm, according to her official biography.

She began performing music at the age of 5 and won multiple talent contests early on. While she initially gained recognition through her songwriting, with artists like The Oak Ridge Boys and Reba McEntire recording her work, her career as a performer soon followed.

In 1975, Cornelius secured her first major recording deal with RCA Records. She is notably remembered for her successful duets with Jim Ed Brown.

Their collaboration led to winning the CMA award for vocal duo in 1977, propelled by their chart-topping hit, "I Don't Want to Have to Marry You."

The duo's success continued, earning them a best vocal performance Grammy nomination in 1979 with the song "If the World Ran Out of Love Tonight."

Cornelius spent four years as a guest on Brown's radio show and was a frequent presence on the syndicated TV program "Nashville On The Road."

In 1980, she launched her solo career with her band, Southern Spirit. Throughout her career, she toured alongside notable country artists such as Conway Twitty and The Statler Brothers.

Later, in 1991, Cornelius established a dinner theater in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, where she performed nightly for five years.

"I loved getting to sing different songs each night, take requests, and do such a variety of music," she once said, according to the American Songwriter. "I also loved hiking the mountains and becoming a part of the beautiful Smoky Mountains."

Inducted into the Missouri Country Music Hall of Fame in 2005, Cornelius continued to tour actively into the early 2000s.

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