Scherrie Payne (born November 4 1944 in Detroit, Michigan} is an African-American singer. The younger sister of singer/actress Freda Payne, Scherrie Payne was lead singer of The Supremes from 1973 to 1977, after Jean Terrell left the group in the fall of 1973. Payne is sometimes referred to as "the little lady with the big voice". Prior to her tenure with The Supremes, Scherrie was the lead singer for Glass House, a group signed to the Invictus Label formed by former Motown songwriters Eddie and Brian Holland, and Lamont Dozier.

As a new Supreme in an era when their popularity was waning, Payne often remained quiet during interviews with the group; mainly because four years later, reporters were still asking about Diana Ross. When she arrived, original Supreme Mary Wilson and 1960s Supreme Cindy Birdsong were the other two members of the group. Payne contributed powerful vocals and attitude to the group, with Birdsong and Wilson backing her up very well. Payne gained recognition for her vocals in "He's My Man". An accomplished songwriter, Payne was never able to write any special material for The Supremes which reportedly disappointed her.

Payne began to realize that Motown really care as much about The Supremes as in the past, due to the changing musical tastes of the era and due to the fact that they were working to further the solo career of Diana Ross. Payne's contributions did enable The Supremes to enter the disco era, however, with such dance hits as "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do The Walking", "You're My Driving Wheel", "Let Yourself Go", and "Love I Never Knew You Could Feel So Good". While each of these disco gems landed in the Billboard Dance Top Five, they didsn't perform as well on the pop and R&B charts. The single "I'm Gonna Let My Heart Do The Walking" rose in the Billboard Top 40 to #25 on the R&B chart, and #40 on the Pop chart.

The final three Supremes (Scherrie, Mary, and Susaye) officially disbanded in 1977 with a farewell concert in London, with Supremes founding member Mary Wilson announcing that she would emabrk on a solo career. Scherrie and Susaye decided to remain with the group and add a new third member, inviting Joyce Vincent Wilson of Tony Orlando and Dawn to be the next Supreme. However, when Wilson decided she wanted to rejoin the group, Payne and Greene left The Supremes. Payne and Greene recorded an album together on Motown label, "Partners", under the name "Scherrie and Susaye" in 1979. The album received mixed reviews and the two decided to part in order to embark on solo projects.

In 1986, Payne joined former Supremes Jean Terrell and Lynda Laurence to form the Former Ladies of the Supremes or FLOS. In 2000, along with Laurence, she became a part of Diana Ross' Return To Love tour, which was billed as a Supremes reunion, though Ross, Laurence, and Payne were never in the group at the same time. High ticket prices and the fact that Mary Wilson and Cindy Birdsong were not present were both factors contributing to early demise of the tour.

As a solo artist, Scherrie has enjoyed several club hits, notably "I'm Not In Love" (featuring sister Freda Payne and former Supreme Mary Wilson on backing vocals) in 1982, followed two years later by "One Night Only" (which featured former Supreme Cindy Birdsong on background vocals). In 1986 Scherrie recorded a solo album for Superstar International Records which contained several duets with Philip Ingram. The following year, Scherrie signed with British producer Ian Levine for his Motown reunion project, Motorcity Records. While with this label, Scherrie released two solo singles "Chasing Me Into Somebody Else's Arms" and "Pure Energy" (co-written by Payne), as well as covers of two Diana Ross tunes, "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" and "I'm Still Waiting". Other product recorded for Motorcity included "Who's Wrong, Who's Right" and "One More Time".

Payne continues to perform, both as a solo act and as a part of the "Former Ladies of the Supremes". A "FLOS" 20th anniversary concert is scheduled for 2006 in Los Angeles.

1944 births | Living people | African American musicians | American female singers | Supremes members