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ABC/Lorenzo BevilaquaPatti LaBelle is a Philadelphia legend, and the R&B great will be honored by her hometown today, as it names a section of a street after her.
A stretch of Broad Street between Spruce and Locust Streets will be renamed Patti LaBelle Way at a ceremony scheduled for 4 p.m. ET today. The powerhouse singer is being honored for her 50-year-plus career as an entertainer, as well as for her charitable work for such causes as cancer, AIDS/HIV, adoption and more. LaBelle will be attending the dedication, as will a variety of local dignitaries.
In a video posted on her Twitter feed, LaBelle says, “Come on out July 2 and celebrate with Patti Patti. I love you, Philly. Thank you for this moment.”
The renaming ceremony is being held as part of the Wawa Welcome America Festival, a multi-day, multi-event celebration in Philadelphia that began this past Saturday and will culminate with the July 4 festivities.
The famous Philly Soul production and songwriting duo of Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff issued a statement tipping their hats to LaBelle on her honor.
“We congratulate our very dear friend Patti LaBelle on her street naming honors today,” the message reads. “Patti is one of the greatest music legends to come out of Philadelphia, and she is beloved around the world. This could not happen to a better, and more well-deserved, person and friend!”
Patti worked with Gamble and Huff on several of her solo albums, and also collaborated with them on Back to Now, the 2008 reunion album by her former group Labelle.
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after getting Hometown LaBelle's named patti philly street today
