Anita Ward

Anita Ward (born December 20, 1956) is an American singer and musician from Memphis, Tennessee. Beginning her professional music career in the late 1970s, Ward is best known for her 1979 million-selling chart-topper R&B/Disco hit "Ring My Bell" which was #1 on the United States Hot 100, R&B, Dance and United Kingdom charts. Ward was born in Memphis, Tennessee, United States. Ward obtained a degree in psychology from Rust College in Holly Springs, Mississippi. Ward was a schoolteacher before signing a recording contract. While recording her debut album, record label owner Frederick Knight presented her with a song he had written the previous year for Stacy Lattisaw. Ward did not like the song, but Knight insisted that a dance track was needed to capitalize on the current disco trend, and Ward relented. The song, which was originally a juvenile-targeted tune about teens talking on the telephone, was rewritten with more 'adult' lyrics and the result was the single "Ring My Bell". The s...