Born into soul royalty, the Womack Sisters inherited music, but earned their success

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Set us as preferred It was the early ‘90s, and sisters BG, Zeimani and Kucha were at a family reunion on a horse ranch in West Virginia.While gathered around a crackling campfire, they swayed to the sounds of guitar strings and buttery baritone vocals, ensconced in a halo of warmth.
But what made this particular family sing-along remarkable was that one of the lead voices belonged to soul legend Bobby Womack.The three sisters, who were children at the time, were his nieces, who lovingly referred to him as “Uncle Bob.” Known as the Womack Sisters, BG, Zeimani and Kucha, come from an illustrious musical lineage.
In addition to their famous uncle, whose more than 60-year career gave the world songs like “Across 110th Street” and a haunting rendition of “California Dreamin’,” their maternal grandfather is celebrated Chicago singer and songwriter Sam Cooke, who was dubbed “King of Soul.” Cooke was fatally shot by a motel manager in South Central Los Angeles in 1964 under mysterious and contentious circumstances.His death robbed the Womack Sisters of a grandfather, but his musical legacy continues to influence them today.Though the Womacks come from a line of West Virginian horse breeders, there was nothing Americana about the childhoods of BG, Zeimani and Kucha.
They were three of seven home-schooled children, so their parents were their best friends and teachers.As the children grew up, their parents also became their mentors, managers and producers.
Providing an education for their brood that no classroom or textbook could offer, Cecil and Linda Womack (née Linda Cooke) traveled the globe with their kids in tow, bouncing between languages and countries, recording albums, playing shows and picking up threads of each city’s culture along the way.“Our parents wanted to see the world,” BG...