Mavis Staples is an American rhythm and blues and gospel singer, actress, and civil rights activist.
She rose to fame as a member of her family’s band The Staple Singers. During her time in the group, she recorded the hit singles “I’ll Take You There” and “Let’s Do It Again”.
In this particular article, we would like to get to know about her parents.
Mavis Staples’s parents: Meet Pops Staples, Oceola Staples
On July 10, 1939, Mavis Staples was born in Chicago, Illinois. Her parents were Roebuck “Pops” Staples and Oceola Staples, the youngest of four children.
Pops, a well-known musician in his own right, moved to Chicago and accepted work in the meatpacking industry before Staples was born in 1939.
Pops continued to perform music and eventually joined the quartet’s Trumpet Jubilees band. He grew tired of the lack of excitement in the band and quit and formed a new one with his immediate family.
The sole non-stage performer among the gospel and pop ensemble Staples Singers, Oceola Staples, died at home in Dolton at the age of 69.
She was a Staples Singer, but she didn’t sing, according to Roebuck, the group’s founder and the wife of Mrs Staples for 53 years. She was our source of motivation and strength.
Mrs Staples, who was born in Louisville, Mississippi, met her husband while attending school in Drew, Mississippi. In 1933, two years after their wedding, they left for Chicago. Mrs Staples and her husband were lovingly referred to as “Mom” and “Pop” by family and friends.