At the age of thirteen, Birmingham, Alabama’s Cleo Kennedy became both a singer and a foot soldier in the Civil Rights Movement. She served as a featured soloist in the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights Choir, whose music fueled the mass meetings at Sixteenth Street Baptist Church. During the historic marches of 1963, she was arrested and jailed for her participation.

Documentary recordings from the height of the movement — preserved by Smithsonian Folkways on the album Lest We Forget Vol 2 Birmingham Alabama 1963 Mass Meeting — captured her signature interpretations of “City Called Heaven” and “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” Kennedy continued spreading the songs, stories, and lessons of the Civil Rights Movement through her work with the Freedom Singers and Birmingham’s Carlton Reese Memorial Unity Choir.

An accomplished gospel artist with a distinctive soprano voice, Kennedy was still a teenager when she joined Dorothy Love Coates and the Gospel Harmonettes, the celebrated Birmingham-based group with whom she recorded four albums. After relocating to Los Angeles, California, in 1979, she began a long and meaningful association with James Cleveland, who featured her prominently in his groups. She remained close to Cleveland until his passing and honored him by singing at his funeral in 1991.

Through her work with Cleveland, Kennedy expanded into secular pop music, performing backing vocals for legendary artists including Ray Charles, Diana Ross, Graham Nash, Paul Williams, and Aretha Franklin, among others. She also appeared in the television miniseries Roots and the film The Blues Brothers.

In 1992, Kennedy joined Bruce Springsteen on his world tour — an experience she regards as one of the most unforgettable highlights of her career. After the tour, she returned to Birmingham, once again becoming a cornerstone of the local gospel scene and performing extensively with the Birmingham Community Mass Choir and other groups.

In recognition of her lifelong contributions to gospel music and civil rights history, she was inducted into the Gospel Music Living Legends Hall of Fame in 2024.