Cat Glover

Lore & Background

Born in the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago, Glover was raised there and, from age 10 on, in Morgan Park, Chicago. She was the youngest of four girls born to Mildred Taylor and Doneall Glover, and was named after her maternal grandmother Catherine Taylor. Her birth date is sometimes given as July 23, 1964 in obituaries, but July 24, 1962 has been cited by her manager and by Glover herself in a 1989 interview. She began performing at age 5 in a group called the Soullettes, started by her eldest sister Mitlitha. At age eight, she appeared at the Playboy Towers Hotel in Chicago. Her first mainstream television exposure came on Star Search with dance partner Patrick Allen as 'Pat & Cat'; their act was the first to achieve a 'Perfect Score' of Four Stars. Glover was the standout member, winning the crowd with her trademark dance move 'Cat Scat'. She was best known for her work with Prince in the late 1980s, choreographing and appearing in several of his videos and his concert film Sign o' the Times, traveling with him as a backing vocalist and dancer on the Sign o' the Times Tour and Lovesexy Tour, and rapping on The Black Album track 'Cindy C.' and the Lovesexy song 'Alphabet St.' She was supposed to have released an album on Paisley Park, but the project was canceled. After Prince, she moved to London and signed with Red Dot Records, releasing a single titled 'Catwoman' (1989). She later worked in London and Los Angeles, recording her own material and continuing choreography and performing. She also recorded vocals with Nicolaj Steen, Marshall Jefferson with Jesse Saunders on their 1996 house anthem '12" Of Love', Louie Louie, and Steve Hopkins. Glover had four children and died at her home in Los Angeles on September 24, 2024, at age 62, from congestive heart failure and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

In Their Own Story

The studio lights hummed their low amber glow. Cat stood at the mic, eyes half-closed, feeling the track build beneath her like a tide she'd only just noticed rising. Prince was at the console, headphones around his neck, mouthing syllables to himself, conducting the air with two fingers. She didn't need to see the chart. The melody had settled somewhere behind her sternum during the walk from the van to the studio door, and now it was simply a matter of letting it out. She sang the line. He nodded once, slow, and said a word she couldn't quite catch over the monitors. The tape kept rolling. Outside, the Minnesota night pressed its cold glass against the windows, and for a few minutes the only thing that existed was the sound of a British voice finding its shape inside an American song.

Reader's Guide

Cat Glover was an American choreographer, dancer, singer, and rapper, best known for her work with Prince in the late 1980s. She choreographed and appeared in his videos and concert film, toured as a backing vocalist and dancer, and rapped on two Prince tracks. She also released an EP, Catwoman, in 1989.

Did You Know?

• Her birth date is sometimes given as July 23, 1964, but July 24, 1962 is cited by her manager and by Glover herself.
• She was the first to achieve a 'Perfect Score' of Four Stars on Star Search with dance partner Patrick Allen.
• She rapped on Prince's songs 'Cindy C.' and 'Alphabet St.'