Photo: Angela George at https://www.flickr.com/photos/sharongraphics/ / CC BY-SA 3.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
Della Reese, born on July 6, 1931 in Detroit, Michigan, United States, was a jazz musician, singer and film actor. Della Reese died on November 19, 2017, aged 86. Schooling on record includes Cass Technical High School and Wayne State University. Listed accolades include NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002) and star on Hollywood Walk of Fame.
My Take
What strikes me most about Della Reese is the sheer range of her life. She climbed the pop charts in 1959 with "Don't You Know?", then reinvented herself as an actress so convincingly that she collected an NAACP Image Award for her drama work. And she was an ordained minister on top of it all. To me, that arc, from Detroit's Cass Tech to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, reads less like a career and more like a calling. Whether singing gospel or starring on television, she always seemed to be doing the same essential work: lifting people up. I find that kind of coherence across decades genuinely rare and genuinely moving.
This take was written by generative AI, one per person, from publicly reported facts (editorial policy). It is a reading of the record, not reporting.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Della Reese
- Name (Japanese)
- デラ・リース
- Reading
- でら・りーす
- Born
- July 6, 1931 – November 19, 2017
- Origin
- Detroit, Michigan, United States
- Occupation
- jazz musician / singer / film actor / television actor / stage actor
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Cancer / Goat
2. Background
- High school
- Cass Technical High School
- University
- Wayne State University
Awards & achievements
- 1996 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 1997 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 1998 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 1999 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 2000 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 2001 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- 2002 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Actress in a Drama Series
- star on Hollywood Walk of Fame
3. Links
- Official sitehttps://www.dellareese.com/
- Wikipedia (English)https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Della%20Reese
- Wikidatahttps://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q238361
4. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
Only publicly available facts are listed; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. Base data was compiled from Wikidata from June 2026 onward; ages are recalculated daily and deaths are checked against Wikidata on an ongoing basis. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.
Frequently asked questions
When was Della Reese born?
Della Reese was born on July 6, 1931.
When did Della Reese die?
Della Reese died on November 19, 2017, aged 86.
Where was Della Reese from?
Della Reese was from Detroit, Michigan, United States.
What did Della Reese do?
Della Reese worked as jazz musician, singer, film actor, television actor, stage actor.
Where did Della Reese study?
Della Reese attended Wayne State University.
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