Vicki Anderson – born Myra Barnes in Houston, Texas on November 21, 1939 – was a soul singer best known for her association with soul and funk icon James Brown. Along with her studio and live work with James Brown, she also released a series of solo singles including "You Send Me" (1966), "Nobody Cares" (1967), "Baby Don't You Know" (1967), and "Think" (1967). Vicki Anderson was already performing and had released some singles sides before joining James Brown’s group as a replacement for Anna King. Vickie Anderson had known James Brown because she was married to Bobby Byrd, who was an integral member of Brown’s backing band The Famous Flames. While employed by Brown, she continued to release solo singles although she didn’t achieve chart success on her own. She left James Brown’s group in 1968 and was replaced by Marva Whitney. A year later, Marva left the group and Vicki Anderson returned to James Brown’s group for another three years. In 1970, she issued the single “The Message from the Soul Sisters,” which was released under her birth name of Myra Barnes. The song, which also featured Lyn Collins, proved to be her most successful solo single and remains her best-known release. Vicki Anderson left James Brown’s group again in 1972 and continued to release several more solo singles including “You’re Welcome, Stop on By,” which was released in 1975 under the pseudonym of Momie-O. She was unable to capture the excitement of her early days and Vicki Anderson eventually stepped away from the spotlight. However, she did reunite with James Brown and Bobby Byrd for a brief time in the 1990s. Although she never released an album, some of her finest recordings were compiled on various compilations including James Brown's Original Funky Divas (1998), Mother Popcorn (Vicki Anderson Anthology) (2004) and Wide Awake in a Dream: James Brown Productions from the Pre-Funk Years (2010). Vicki Anderson died on July 4, 2023, at the age of 83.
