I Can Turn Emotions On & Off

In 1983, Ross reunited with former Supremes Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong for the television special Motown 25: Yesterday, Today, Forever. The three singers performed their 1969 number-one hit "Someday We'll Be Together", although altercations on stage between Ross and Wilson became an issue during the taping of the special. A four song Supremes set was planned but Ross declined to rehearse with "The Girls" and stated that they would have to be happy just doing "Someday We'll Be Together". Due to the lack of rehearsal, Wilson planned with Birdsong to take a step forward every time Ross did as to not fade into the background. Wilson was not aware of the script set by producer Suzanne DePasse, in which Ross was to introduce Berry Gordy. Wilson took it upon herself to do so, at which point Ross pushed down Wilson's hand-held microphone, stating "It's been taken care of." Ross then, after fluffing her hair, proceeded to introduce Gordy herself. These incidents were excised from the final edit of the taped special, but still made their way into the news media; People magazine reported that "Ross [did] some elbowing to get Wilson out of the spotlight."


Later that year, Ross held a much-heralded concert in Central Park, the proceeds of which were to go towards building a playground in the singer's name. Fifteen minutes into the show, which was being filmed for Showtime cable television, it began to rain, and as she urged the crowd of 300,000 to safely exit the venue, Ross announced that she would continue the performance the next day. Ross' actions drew praise within the mainstream press.

That next day, over 500,000 people came back for one of the largest free concerts in the park's history. However, the second show generated controversy. During and after the concert, groups of young men began a rampage through Central Park, assaulting and robbing more than a hundred people.



Some of the victims of the attacks subsequently filed law suits against New York City for failing to provide adequate security at the concert; the law suits were eventually settled at a cost of millions of dollars. Although representatives of Diana Ross originally refused to pay anything for the proposed playground, citing a lack of revenue from the concert, the Diana Ross Playground was finally built three years later.




Other hit singles recorded by Ross for RCA included the Grammy nominated "Muscles" (1982), "So Close" (1983), "Pieces of Ice" (1983), "All of You" (1984), the no. 1 dance hit "Swept Away" (1984), the no. 1 R&B Marvin Gaye tribute "Missing You" (1985), "Eaten Alive" (1985) and the UK number-one single, "Chain Reaction" (1986). Ross also sang on the 1985 worldwide #1 "We Are The World". Hit albums during this period included the gold-certified releases, All The Great Hits, Silk Electric, Diana Ross Anthology and Swept Away, the latter being the last top forty charted album in Ross' career for two decades.
While Ross continued to have success overseas as the 1980s continued, she began to struggle on the United States Billboard Hot 100 chart. The 1987 album Red Hot Rhythm & Blues was a critical but less commercial success and "If We Hold On Together", the theme to the Steven Spielberg animated film "The Land Before Time" in 1988 was a # 1 single in Japan, later making the UK Top 20 in 1992. In 1989, after leaving RCA, Diana Ross returned to Motown, where Ross was now both a part-owner and a recording artist.

In 1989, Diana Ross released her first Motown album in eight years, the Nile Rodgers-produced Workin' Overtime.


Despite a Top 10 R&B hit with the title track, the album failed to find a pop audience in America, as Ross' 1987 RCA release had. Subsequent follow-up albums such as 1991's The Force Behind the Power, 1995's Take Me Higher and 1999's Every Day is a New Day produced the same disappointing results in the US. Her last major R&B hit was "No Matter What You Do", a duet with Al B. Sure!, which peaked at #4 in early 1991.

Ross starred in TV shows, continued with concers and appearances and is perhaps one of the most recognizable faces in the world.



Diana Ross returned to acting in the ABC telefilm, Out of Darkness (1994), in which she played a woman suffering from schizophrenia. Once again, Ross drew critical acclaim for her acting, and scored her third Golden Globe nomination.
In 1999, Ross co-starred with young R&B singer Brandy for the ABC television movie Double Platinum playing a singer who neglected her daughter while concentrating on her career.





In 2005, Diana Ross returned to the charts with a pair of duets. "I Got a Crush on You" was recorded with Rod Stewart for his album The Great American Songbook, and reached #19 on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart. Another duet, recorded with Westlife, was a remake of Ross' 1991 #2 UK single, "When You Tell Me You Love Me", and reached #2 in the UK just as the original had and #1 in Ireland.

In June 2006, Motown released the shelved Blue album, where it peaked at #2 on the jazz albums chart. In October, Ross' new studio album, I Love You, was released on October 2 around the world, and then saw release in North America on January 16, 2007, on the Manhattan Records/EMI label.
The new album earned the coveted Hot Shot Debut by Billboard magazine when it bowed at #32 on the pop albums chart, making it Ross' first top forty US pop album since 1984's Swept Away. Since its release in 2007, EMI Inside reports that I Love You has sold more than 250,000 copies world-wide.


Diana Ross is applauded by her fellow Kennedy Center honorees as she is recognized for her achievements by President George W. Bush in the East Room of the White House Sunday, Dec. 2, 2007, during the Kennedy Center Gala Reception.


In January 2007, Ross appeared on a number of TV shows across the U.S. to promote her new album and began touring in the spring. She also appeared on American Idol as a mentor to the contestants Ross's United States "I Love You" tour has garnered positive reviews, as well as her European tour, which began on May 6, 2007.

At the 2007 BET Awards, Ross was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by singer Alicia Keys and her five children. Stevie Wonder, Erykah Badu, and Chaka Khan performed a tribute to Ross, covering several of her hits. Later that year, the prestigious Kennedy Center Honors committee which recognizes career excellence, cultural influence and contributions to American culture named Diana Ross as one of the honorees. Past honoree and fellow Motown alumni Smokey Robinson and actor Terence Howard spoke on her behalf at the official ceremony that December, and singers Ciara, Vanessa L. Williams, Yolanda Adams, and American Idol winner Jordin Sparks performed in a musical tribute.
In February 2008, Diana Ross was the guest speaker at the Houston-based Brilliant Lecture series, at The Hobby Center, Houston. The lectures are designed to present prolific and influential characters to speak about their life and inspirations. During this lecture, Ross revealed that it was "unlikely" that she would undertake any further movie projects.
In early May 2008, Diana headlined at New York's Radio City Hall at the 'Divas with Heart' event, which also featured fellow R&B legends Gladys Knight, Chaka Khan and Patti LaBelle. In July 2008, Diana Ross performed at two major events in the UK; the famous Liverpool Pops Festival and the National Trust Summer Festival at Petworth House, East Sussex. In addition, Diana Ross is also scheduled for a further North America/Canada/European tour throughout the year.



In early December 2008, Motown announced the result of an international poll of the greatest Motown tracks. The winner, worldwide, was Marvin Gaye's "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" while Ross' version of "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" was No. 2.

This track was the top choice by British voters. The poll determined the track listing for a Motown fiftieth anniversary album to be released in December. So many Supremes and Diana Ross cuts finished in the Top 50 of the poll that they had to eliminate some of their songs from the anniversary album or it would have been another Diana Ross CD; proving she still reigns 'supreme'.