Rose Royce is an American soul and R&B group best known for their 1970s hits like “Car Wash,” “I Wanna Get Next to You,” “I’m Going Down,” “Wishing on a Star,” and “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore.
” The Los Angeles-based group included Gwen Dickey, Henry Garner, Terral “Terry” Santiel, Lequeint “Duke” Jobe, Michael Moore, Kenny Copeland, Kenji Brown, Freddie Dunn, and Victor Nix.
Originally formed as Total Concept Unlimited, they toured with Edwin Starr and later became Magic Wand under Norman Whitfield’s direction. Whitfield renamed them Rose Royce for the “Car Wash” soundtrack, which brought them fame and a Grammy for Best Motion Picture Score Album. Their albums “In Full Bloom” and “Strikes Again!” produced hits like “Do Your Dance,” “Ooh Boy,” and “Love Don’t Live Here Anymore.”
After lead singer Gwen Dickey left in 1980, the group saw various line-up changes but remained popular in the UK. Their story was featured in TV One’s “Unsung” in 2010.