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Pebe Sebert

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Pebe Sebert
Sebert in 2021
Born
Rosemary Patricia Sebert

(1956-03-17) March 17, 1956 (age 68)
Michigan City, Indiana, U.S.
Other names
  • Patricia Rose Sebert
  • P. Sebert
  • Sebert
  • D. Sebert
  • Pebe Seber
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1977; div. 1984)​
Children3, including Kesha
Musical career
Genres
Occupations
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instruments
  • Vocals
  • piano
  • guitar
Years active1976–present

Rosemary Patricia "Pebe" Sebert[1] (/ˈpiːbi ˈsɛbərt/ PEE-bee SEB-ərt; born March 17, 1956) is an American singer and songwriter from Brentwood, Tennessee, and the mother of singer and songwriter Kesha. Sebert has co-written number-one hits for Dolly Parton, Pitbull, and Kesha, her daughter. Sebert and Kesha have written 11 published songs together. The songs Sebert wrote for other artists have combined sales of over 8 million copies in the United States alone.[2] In 2013, Sebert appeared as a regular on reality show Kesha: My Crazy Beautiful Life, which starred Kesha and was filmed by her son Lagan.

Early life and education

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Sebert was born on March 17, 1956, in Michigan City, Indiana, and her early years were spent on her parents' farm. She is of German, Hungarian, and Polish descent.[3] Pebe began singing and making up songs at age 4 and singing publicly by age six, and she trained as a singer and played piano and guitar. She sang in groups, bands, and as a solo artist. Sebert entered the Interlochen Arts Academy at age 15, where she participated in the Madrigal group, which toured by invitation in Europe. She also toured as a soprano with the American Youth Symphony and Choir. She began playing coffeehouses in Chicago and Europe throughout her high school years.[4]

Career

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In the 1970s, Sebert wrote "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" with then-husband Hugh Moffatt for American Country singer Joe Sun for his album Old Flames.[5] Sun's version soon became a hit, peaking at No. 14 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. Dolly Parton included a cover of the song on her 1980 album Dolly, Dolly, Dolly two years after Sun's version was released. Parton's version became a huge hit, reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.[6] "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" was later covered by many artists, including Sebert's daughter Kesha for her extended play Deconstructed and her third studio album Rainbow.

In 2004, Sebert lent her vocals on X-Mas Balls' debut holiday album, She Left Me For Rudolph, singing "If I Was an Angel" with Ned McElroy and Jerry Williams.[7]

In May 2005, Sebert and her two children Kesha and Lagan starred in an episode of the reality series The Simple Life which starred Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie. In the May 12, 2005 episode "The Wedding Planner," Sebert lets Hilton and Richie stay at her house while they attempt to plan a wedding and eventually try, with Kesha's help, to set Sebert up on a date.[8]

In 2010, Sebert co-wrote her daughter Kesha's hit song "Your Love Is My Drug", which became a Top 10 single in nine countries and reached triple-platinum in the U.S. Later that year, Sebert and Kesha gave the song "Disgusting" to pop singer Miranda Cosgrove for her debut album, and contributed the title track for Miley Cyrus's debut EP, The Time of Our Lives.

In 2012, Sebert co-wrote "Warrior", "Dirty Love", "Wonderland", "Gold Trans Am", and "Out Alive" for Kesha's second album Warrior. Sebert also provided backing vocals for the tracks "Dirty Love", which featured Iggy Pop, and "Gold Trans Am".[7]

In April 2013, Sebert appeared on Kesha's reality show Kesha: My Crazy Beautiful Life which was filmed by her son Lagan Sebert and aired on MTV. The first season (April 23, 2013 – May 28, 2013) documented Kesha's life as she embarked on her first solo tour and worked on her second album, Warrior.[8] The second season featured Kesha spending more time at home taking a much-needed break, and featured Sebert's youngest son and Kesha's youngest brother, Louie, who hadn't appeared in the first season. Season two ran from October 30 to December 18, 2013.

In 2013, Sebert co-wrote Kesha and American rapper Pitbull's hit single "Timber", which was released on October 2, 2013, and became a Top 10 single in 28 countries and No. 1 in 12 countries.[9][10][11]

On December 31, 2013, Kesha released a music video for "Dirty Love", which Sebert had co-written and for which she contributed vocals.

In 2017, Sebert co-produced Kesha's comeback album Rainbow which features two new tracks co-written by the duo ("Hymn" and "Learn To Let Go"), as well as a duet of "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You", between Kesha and Parton. Sebert co-wrote the duet "Safe" with Kesha and her son Louie, who performed it alongside indie rapper Chika.

Personal life

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Sebert was married to Hugh Moffatt, with whom she wrote "Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You",[5] for seven years, separating in 1984. They had one child together, Lagan Sebert.

In 1987, Sebert gave birth to daughter Kesha Rose Sebert. Sebert frequently brought Kesha and her brother along to recording studios and encouraged Kesha to sing.[12] She moved the family to Nashville, Tennessee, in 1991 after securing a new publishing deal for her songwriting.

Sebert has one adopted son, Louis Sage "Louie" Sebert, who was born on October 12, 1999. He appeared in an episode of the television series Victorious alongside Kesha.

Through Lagan, Pebe has two grandchildren.[13]

Sebert checked into Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center in Lemont, Illinois, for rehab in January 2014, claiming that she had post-traumatic stress disorder from the trauma of Kesha being attacked by her record label and Dr. Luke.[14] Sebert has admitted that she is a recovering drug addict and alcoholic and had taken Kesha to Alcoholics Anonymous meetings with her since Kesha was a year old.[15][16][17]

Discography

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See also: List of songs written by Pebe Sebert
Year Title Album Credited artist(s) Notes
2004 "If I Was An Angel" She Left Me For Randolph Pebe Sebert, Ned McElroy, Jerry Williams Featured vocalist
2013 "Dirty Love" Warrior Kesha, Iggy Pop Background vocalist
2017 "Learn to Let Go" Rainbow Kesha
"Boogie Feet" Kesha, Eagles of Death Metal
"Old Flames Can't Hold a Candle to You" Kesha, Dolly Parton Producer
"Spaceship" Kesha Background vocalist
2020 "Potato Song (Cuz I Want To)" High Road
2021 "Vampire" Pebe Sebert Debut single, recorded in 1985
2022 "Hard Times Ahead" Second single, recorded in 1980s

Awards and nominations

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BMI Pop Music Awards

Filmography

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Television
Year Title Role Notes
2005 The Simple Life Herself "Wedding Planner" (Season 3, Episode 15)
2013 Kesha: My Crazy Beautiful Life Herself Series regular (14 Episodes)

References

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  1. ^ Hendicott, James (March 10, 2016). "Kesha's mother on Dr Luke: 'he almost destroyed us'". NME. Retrieved January 31, 2024.
  2. ^ "Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – May 09, 2014". RIAA. n.d. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  3. ^ Brodsky, Rachel (April 15, 2013). "Ke$ha Once Snuck into Prince's House & 5 Other Fascinating Things We Learned From Her Interview With Vinny Guadagnino (VIDEO)". MTV News. Archived from the original on November 19, 2015.
  4. ^ "Kesha". IMDb.
  5. ^ a b "Ke$ha following mom's country music lead?". The Tennessean. Carol Hudler. Retrieved October 31, 2012.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944–2006, Second edition. Record Research. p. 262.
  7. ^ a b Pebe Sebert (n.d.). "Pebe Sebert | Songs". AllMusic. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  8. ^ a b "Pebe Sebert". IMDb.
  9. ^ Steffen Hung (n.d.). "Pitbull feat. Ke$ha – Timber". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  10. ^ "Pitbull – Chart history". Billboard. n.d. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  11. ^ Steffen Hung (n.d.). "Pitbull feat. Ke$ha – Timber". australian-charts.com. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  12. ^ Day, Elizabeth (November 29, 2010). "She's a walking, talking living dollar". The Guardian. UK. Retrieved November 29, 2010.
  13. ^ "Lagan Sebert". IMDb.
  14. ^ Telling, Gillian (n.d.). "Ke$ha's Mom, Pebe Sebert, Checks into Rehab Center With Daughter". People. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  15. ^ "Kesha's Mom Pebe Sebert Checks into Rehab With Her". Popcrush.com. n.d. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  16. ^ "Ke$ha's Mom Speaks Out: "She Doesn't Have a Drinking Problem"". Celebuzz.com. January 8, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  17. ^ "Ke$ha's mother Pebe Sebert: My daughter's not in rehab for alcohol, she's bulimic | Wonderwall". MSN. January 9, 2014. Archived from the original on August 16, 2014. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  18. ^ "2011 BMI Pop Music Award List | Press". BMI.com. May 18, 2011. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
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