We already brought you part one of our list of 15 things you probably did not know about Carole King, and now we’re back with part two! Check out eight more fascinating facts about the singer and musician that you definitely (probably) did not know below. You might be surprised by what you find out!
Number Eight: She Has Her Own Broadway Show. The musical is called Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, and it’s about her life when she was younger. Both her trials and triumphs are documented in the show, which is currently on Broadway.
Number Seven: She Is an Inspiration. King has inspired countless other musicians throughout their careers. Sam Hollander, who previously worked with King and has also worked with One Direction, said, “Growing up, Tapestry was the Sunday morning soundtrack in my house. It was the one record in my parents’ collection that I stole.”
Number Six: She Held a Record for 20 Years. After the release of Tapestry, it would hold the record for an album by a female artist spending the most weeks at number one for more than 20 years.
Number Five: She Was the First Woman to Received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize. In 2013, King received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, and she was the very first woman to do so.
Number Four: She Made a Demo With Paul Simon. In high school, King started a band called the Co-Sines, and they made records with her friend Paul Simon, who is also wildly famous now. They would record their demos for $25 a session.
Number Three: She Got Married When She Was 17. King married Gerry Goffin when she was just 17 years old. They met at Queens College, and they married after she became pregnant with their first daughter.
Number Two: Her Husband Physically Abused Her. Not her first husband, but her third husband, Rick Evers, physically abused her on a regular basis. Evers later died of a cocaine overdose just days after he and King broke up.
Number One: She Made Seven Top 10 Albums. Over the course of her long and illustrious career, King has made an impressive seven albums that cracked the Top 10. The most notable of these is Tapestry, which is certified as Diamond.