Person · Female
Debra Byrd
- From
- Cleveland, United States
- Active
- 1951–2024
- Releases
- 1
About
Debra Byrd (July 19, 1951 – March 5, 2024) was an American vocalist who worked with Bob Dylan, with Barry Manilow as part of his backup group from 1974 to 1979, and appeared on Broadway. She later served as the head vocal coach for American Idol and Canadian Idol, also singing backup for the contestants. Byrd helped with vocals on the Hub Television Series "Majors and Minors".
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In her later years, she served as vocal coach for ten seasons of American Idol, as well as the short-lived American Juniors, and all six seasons of Canadian Idol. In late 2006 she helped judge Military Idol, a singing competition where all contestants are members of the U.S. Army.
Byrd died on March 5, 2024, at the age of 72.
Member of
Discography
Singles
Links
Official
Concerts
Reference
Vocal supporting musician
Identifiers
- MusicBrainz
- c2afd5b3-16b1-4023-960c-94d91db47a47
- ISNI
- 0000000042914530
Data from MusicBrainz, saved 11 Nov 2026. Photo from Wikimedia Commons, covers from the Cover Art Archive and Apple Music.