Overview

• Her death was confirmed on July 17 by long-time manager Ron Roberts in a Facebook statement without disclosing a cause.
• She had been hospitalized in early July in Florida for severe pain, forcing her to cancel a scheduled performance.
• In early 2025, her 1962 song “Pretty Little Baby” went viral on TikTok, generating over 15 million user-created videos.
• Francis sold more than 40 million records globally between 1957 and 1964 and recorded songs in over ten languages during her peak.
• After surviving a 1974 hotel assault and winning a landmark safety lawsuit, she chronicled her life in two autobiographies before retiring in 2018.