On Oprah’s Master Class, the seven-time Grammy Award-winning singer Gladys Knight talks about her career from the beginning – performing with her brother and two cousins “The Pips” — and the second half of her career, when she found her own voice. She also talks about her personal life. Knight has been married four times and has three children. Her current husband is William McDowell. They’ve been married since 2001.
Knight and McDowell bought an abandoned, crumbling high school in Canton, North Carolina in 2015 for $80,000. McDowell grew up nearby. Reynolds High School was once the only African-American high school in western North Carolina west of Asheville. It closed in 1966. Knight and McDowell plans to raise $5 million to rebuild the property as the Reynolds Community Center which will include a music center, drug and alcohol addition counseling services, a food pantry, a computer lab, exercise rooms, and an outdoor athletic field, among other amenities. Knight is hosting a benefit concert on October 29 featuring Little Big Town and a number of surprise musical guests. Oprah’s Master Class airs Saturdays at 8pm and 9pm on OWN.
