Cynthia "Cindy" Fee | |
|---|---|
 Cynthia Fee photographed in 2023 | |
| Born | December 6, 1954 Detroit, Michigan |
| Occupation | recording artist |
| Period | 1970–present |
| Notable works | "Thank You for Being a Friend", from the NBC sitcom The Golden Girls |
Cynthia L. "Cindy" Fee (born December 6, 1954) is an American singer and recording artist. She is best known for performing "Thank You for Being a Friend", [1] [2] [3] the opening theme song for the Emmy- and Golden Globe-winning sitcom [4] [5] The Golden Girls .
Cynthia L. "Cindy" Fee was born in Detroit, Michigan, and grew up in Raytown, Missouri, where she was active in music and theater at Raytown High School. [6]
Fee started performing professionally at sixteen, working Kansas City-area restaurants, clubs, local theaters, and amusement parks. In 1973, Fee became a founding member, along with Eric Bikales, of the Kansas City band Hotfoot [7] and also sang with the jazz group the Means/Devan Trio. [8]
Fee recorded a cover of Andrew Gold's song "Thank You for Being a Friend" for the credits of The Golden Girls. [9] During the show's first run and in syndication, the song became well known. In honor of Betty White's 90th birthday, President Barack Obama released a video of him listening to the theme song. [10] After White's death in 2021, [11] the sitcom and theme song were streamed 384 million times in one week alone. [12] After going viral in 2022, [13] the Golden Con convention, a fan convention, returned to Chicago in 2023 featuring Fee as a headline performer. [14]
Fee also recorded chart-topping records with some of the best-selling music artists of all time. [15] Her discography includes a duet with Kenny Rogers, "I Don't Want to Know Why", [16] from the platinum-selling album, What About Me? [17] Fee is also a credited background singer on the Kenny Rogers album Christmas, [18] which peaked at #34 in the US, [19] and Rogers's Share Your Love , which peaked at #6 in the US. [20] She has also performed as a background singer for Garth Brooks, Dolly Parton, Whitney Houston, and Lionel Richie. [6] Fee also released her own albums Dancin in My Sleep [21] and Young at Heart, [22] [23] the latter with noted rockabilly guitarist Eddie Angel, [24] a founding member of Los Straitjackets.
Fee is also a prolific jingle and TV commercial singer. Fee's commercial jingle credits include: "Get on Your Pontiac and Ride", [1] for Hoover, "Nobody Does It Like You" [25] [26] and "What the Big Boys Eat", [27] from a Wheaties cereal campaign. Fee's voice was also featured in commercials for Chevy Trucks, McDonald's, Miller Beer, Chick-fil-A, Home Depot, Goodyear, Hot Pockets, Barbie, John Deere, NASCAR, Ford, Toyota, Purina, Avon, and American Airlines. [6] Fee's Wheaties and Hoover commercials were awarded Clio awards. [6] [28] [29]
She is married to Robert Landis and has two adult children, Ethan and Rory Landis. Fee frequently performs a genre she calls "country soul", a combination of Motown and country, [2] and has appeared live at venues including in Nashville, Chicago, Los Angeles, as well as in Europe. She is frequently recognized at events and conventions and interviewed about her career. [30]