Florence Ballard - Unreleased Interview Excerpts

For many months in 1974, an ambitious reporter for the Detroit Free Press named Peter Benjaminson interviewed Florence Ballard for an in-depth piece about her life, struggles and triumphs. Conducted at the modest home the ex-Supreme shared with her three young daughters, these private conversations remain the most intimate glimpses available into Flo's feelings about her family, her rise to stardom, her world-famous career, her controversial ousting, and her effort to rebuild her life.

On June 28, 2009, two days before Flo's 66th birthday, black entertainment channel TV One honored Flo's life with an hour-long installment about her in their popular "Unsung" series. This episode (which I have uploaded) features a few minutes of never-before-heard excerpts of Flo and Benjaminson's sessions.

In this video I condensed all of Flo's words in the order they aired. This audio appears nowhere else. ... Hopefully someday Benjaminson will release all of the interviews to Flo's adoring public.

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Florence Ballard
• Flo
• Interview
• Motown
• Unsung
• Blondie
• Supremes
• Mary Wilson
• Otis Williams
• Maxine Ballard
• Peter Benjaminson

[4eva68]

Thank you for posting this.

[bcoombs1988]

You are so welcome :-)

[paul51]

I vaguely remember reading the article in Look Magazine that featured The Supremes. Miss Flo stated she would dream of one day having her own telephone. Miss Flo also stated in that article while at high school, she would not pick up her feet too much while walking, as she use to have holes at the bottom of her shoes.

[bcoombs1988]

Yes, I have that article. It's great :-)

[MarvelettesDude]

The Supremes - no one knew what kind of struggle they went throught to get to the top and for Florence getting to the top was one of the hardest things to do, she also "fell" off the top and went back to the rock bottom. But what seperates her from everyone else she never gave and despite her troubles she tried and probably would have cllimbed back to the top. Too bad she didnt make it

[Vincent50]

The whole Supreme saga is Flo was not willing to sell her soul the way Diana and Mary did. She saw deeper into the fame bit than the other two which cost her, her job. Diana and Mary would learn years later and struggle to keep their career going. I wish Flo could've achieved something more out of life but she was constantly being robbed at every turn she made by Motown, her lawyer and yes her husband. She didn't have a break anywhere. I LOVE YOU FLO.

[pissedoff7771]

i love you florence yesterday,today and tomorrow.always.you do live on you still have fans and freinds yes even now.people have their opinions and beliefs and they are intitled to that just as we chose to love you. i think you are grand thanks for bringing the girls together.i enjoyed the supremes so much.when the person whos suppose to be in your corner always betrays you thats very hard.tommy was not good for florence.she needed a man that would of been there for her.

[TWTR4EVER]

@tommiexander I don't take marching orders from anybody!

One thing is certain, as long as I have a forum on which I can share the fact (this is just one of them) of who's truly Diane Ross and the role Berry Gordy played on the injustices of fellow artist (Florence Ballard, Mary Wilson & Cindy Birdsong and others) committed for the benefit and glory of a two timing, bastard bearing megalomania starlet (Diane Ross) the story will keep on being circulated for those who would listen!

[tommiexander]

@TWTR4EVER

You need to let it go because who fed you the information that you are going on about?.....Was it Flo, or maybe it was Motown's legal department who told you what was going on behind the scenes....

[TWTR4EVER]

@tommiexander I don't know who you're addressing as "young people that don't know nothing" because it seems that you been fed the lies and misinformation that Motown/Berry Gordy/ Diane Ross Legal, marketing, publicity department created to justify the ousting of Florence Ballard fromTHE SUPREMES!

One mistake young and inexperienced Florence did was to TRUST the legal team assigned to her by Motown (Hello?) they were not looking up for her interest, they were looking up for MOTOWN!

[ramona2400]

It seems that Flo Ballard here, herself , after all these years and through these interviews is telling pretty much the same story Tony Turner told, as if he was speaking for Flo, in his book, "All That Glittered My Life With The Supremes". Who knew? The mixture of the legal facts and tradedies from the Benjaminson book, and the behind the scenes guts and glory from the Turner book, could just make this a fascinating movie.

[tommiexander]

I don't know where you get off telling me you hope that this is the last time I come on here. You MUST be crazy! If anything you young people that don't know nothing about what went on in those days need to move on with this because I can't figure out why you all are so into this as if you knew Flo personally. You all have plenty of messed up situations today that you should be uptight about rather than trippin about something that happened 40 years ago when most of you weren't even alive.

[TWTR4EVER]

@tommiexander Yes, I hope this is the last time you come here with your BS!

You're insulting the memory of dead ICON MS. FLORENCE BALLAR & THE SUPREMES!

Your DIANE/BERRY/MOTOWN practical scenario that's been peddled for years in order not to shattered Diane Ross image is not believable as her long trail of "backstabbing conning deceit" is now clear!

She had Florence "ousted" as she wanted to fully control the group, she got into Berry's pants to do it!

[tommiexander]

I'm going to say this for the last time for those of you that weren't around during those times and who can't seem to get it. He picked Diana, whether he was sleeping with her or not, to sing lead because she had crossover appeal, which is what he was looking for. Flo didn't like it and starting acting up, which made Berry and Diana start getting on her case as well. Common sense: If you're on a job or in a group and you continue to act up, WHAT DO YOU THINK IS GOING TO HAPPEN TO YOU? I'm done.

[TWTR4EVER]

@tommiexander I lived THE SUPREMES saga, those of us that were loyal fans and followed the group in deep from the "mirage" Berry Gordy/Motown & Diane Ross have manufacture to cover their tacks on their deceit through the commercial media that feeds the masses the sanitized version of the facts when in all reality, Florence Ballard was railroad out of not only THE SUPREMES, MOTOWN BUT OUT OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY by those two scum bags!

[TWTR4EVER]

@TheQueenAretha2 I have a feeling he/she is a "ROSSMANIA RABID FAN" (Diane Ross) that wants to discredit any SUPREME that's not Diane as they want the legacy of the 12 # 1 Billboard Pop Singles accredited to THE SUPREMES, not Diane Ross & The Supremes for Diane alone to enhance the "not so stellar" solo career!

God works in mysterious ways and after what Diane did, all her "backstabbing & conning" to go "SOLO" her professional chips are falling into place!

"WHAT GOES AROUND, COMES AROUND"