Billy Davis Jr. (born June 26, 1938)[1] is an American singer and musician, best known as a member of the 5th Dimension. Along with his wife Marilyn McCoo, he had hit records during 1976 and 1977 with "I Hope We Get to Love in Time", "Your Love", and "You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)". Davis and McCoo were married in 1969. They became the first African-American married couple to host a network television series, titled The Marilyn McCoo & Billy Davis Jr. Show, on CBS in the summer of 1977, the year "You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)" won a Grammy Award.
In 1975, Davis and McCoo left the 5th Dimension and began to perform as a duo.[2] Landing a contract with ABC Records, they recorded their 1976 debut album I Hope We Get to Love in Time. The first single was the title track, which was a moderate hit. The follow-up "You Don't Have to Be a Star (To Be in My Show)" was an even bigger hit, reaching No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100 in January 1977.[3] Davis and McCoo were awarded a gold single and a gold album as well as a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.[4] Davis and McCoo were featured in an episode of the TV variety show Captain and Tennille in the 1970s.[5] They also appeared together on "The Love Boat" Season 4 Episode 5 which aired on October 21, 1978.[6] The album Marilyn and Billy featured the song "Saving All My Love for You", later turned into a number one hit by Whitney Houston.[7] Davis starred in the musical Blues in the Night at the Old Globe Theatre.[8] In his guest appearances on the WB's Jamie Foxx Show in the 1990s, he and McCoo played the affluent parents of Foxx's girlfriend Fancy.[9]
In 2020, Davis and McCoo released their first new album in 30 years, Blackbird: Lennon-McCartney Icons for first time in 30 years. Entrepreneur Kathy Ireland released the album through her record label EE1.[10] The duo said it was a civil rights movement which became a human rights movement with a goal to encourage people to come together during trying times, as it was recorded during the covid 19 pandemic.[10][11] During an interview about the album on June 29, 2021, Questlove called McCoo and Davis "the first couple of Pop and Soul." They would later appear in Questlove's Academy Award-winning directorial debut, Summer of Soul.[12]
Davis also appeared alongside McCoo in the 2021 documentary Summer of Soul where they reflected on their participation and impact of the 1969 Harlem Cultural Festival. Davis and McCoo appeared as Brother William and Sister Harriet in "The Waltons: Homecoming" in 2021 and "A Waltons Thanksgiving" in 2022 on The CW Network.[13][14][15]
Personal life
Billy Davis Jr. was born in St. Louis, Missouri.[1] Davis and McCoo have been married for more than 50 years, since July 26, 1969.[2][16] In 1999, Davis was diagnosed with Prostate cancer.[11]
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory.
References
1 2 Davis, Billy Jr.; McCoo, Marilyn (2004). "2". Up, Up and Away. Chicago: Northfield Publishing. ISBN1-881273-17-2. ...my story begins on June 26, 1938, when I was born in St. Louis, Missouri...
1 2 3 4 Larkin, Colin (1993). The Guinness Who's Who of Soul Music (1sted.). Guinness Publishing. pp.84, 85. ISBN0-85112-733-9.
↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 338.
↑ "Episode #1.13", The Captain and Tennille, Daryl Dragon, Toni Tennille, Muhammad Ali, January 24, 1977, retrieved March 8, 2025{{citation}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
