Brenda Russell (née Gordon; born April 8, 1949)[1] is an American singer-songwriter, producer, and keyboardist.

As a teenager she began performing in local bands and was recruited to sing in a Toronto-based girl group called the Tiaras alongside Jackie Richardson, Arlene Trotman, and Colina Phillips.

[6] In her late teens, she joined the Toronto production of Hair, during which time she had begun to play the piano.

The Russells performed as backing vocalists for Elton John's concert at Wembley Stadium on June 21, 1975.

Credited as Brian & Brenda, they released two albums on John's Rocket label: Word Called Love in 1976 and Supersonic Lover in 1977.

[3][5] The duo also performed on two tracks from Robert Palmer's breakout soul-pop album Double Fun.

She also co-wrote the track "Breakout" for Patrice Rushen's 1982 album Straight From The Heart, and performed backing vocals on the song.

Russell wrote and produced the track "Forever" for Phil Perry's 1991 album The Heart of the Man.

[14] In 2003, she signed to the new UK label Dome Records and released the compilation album So Good, So Right: The Best of Brenda Russell.

Produced by Oprah Winfrey, the show's score was written by Russell and lyricists-composers Allee Willis and Stephen Bray.

[17] In 2016, Russell received a Grammy nomination for The Color Purple in the category of Best Musical Theater Album.