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Deborah Harry

A pioneering figure in the development of women's roles in rock-n-roll, Debbie Harry was the visually and vocally striking singer for the punk-New Wave group Blondie, which rose to fame in the late 1970s and early 1980s with such sonically adventurous tunes as "Heart of Glass," "Hanging on the Telephone," "The Tide Is High," "Rapture" and many others. With longtime creative partner Chris Stein, Harry helped to explode the idea of a woman fronting an all-male band as a "cute" curiosity by virtue of her formidable vocals, smart and occasionally controversial lyrics, and icy stage presence. Blondie struck gold in the early '80s with experiments in dance, funk, rap and reggae, but sea changes in musical tastes and Stein's debilitating illness brought the band to a close by 1982. From then on, Harry worked primarily as an actress in films like "Videodrome" (1983) and "Hairspray" (1988) while releasing sporadic solo efforts before Blondie reunited in 1997. Her status as a powerful female foot soldier in the creation of punk rock, as well as the singer of some of the best pop music of the 1980s, preserved Debbie Harry's status as one of rock's best-loved singers.