Nedra Talley Ross, the last surviving member of pioneering 1960s pop group The Ronettes, has died.

She was 80.

“It is with heavy hearts that we share the news of Nedra Talley Ross’ passing,” The Ronettes announced on its Facebook and Instagram pages. “She was a light to those who knew and loved her.”

She died Sunday morning, her daughter Nedra K. Ross said in a Facebook post. Neither gave a cause of death, though her daughter alluded to cancer in an earlier post.

“At approximately 8:30 this morning our mother Nedra Talley Ross went home to be with the Lord,” her daughter wrote. “She was safe in her own bed at home with her family close, knowing she was loved. Thank you Lord.”

Talley was born on Jan. 27, 1946, and began performing with her cousins Veronica and Estelle Bennett as teens and became The Ronettes, based on lead singer Veronica Bennett’s nickname. After starting off in New York’s Peppermint Lounge, they spent two years with well-known music producer Don Kirshner and his Colpix label. In 1963, the three connected with Phil Spector (whom Ronnie Bennett later married, becoming Ronnie Spector), who produced their breakthrough hit “Be My Baby” in 1963. Other hits included“Baby I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain.”

Their success was partly due to Spector’s pioneering “wall of sound” technique, which became The Ronettes signature production style and influenced successive generations of musicians.

Their fashion and style — tighter dresses, beehive hair, heavy “bad girl” makeup — put a new stamp on the girl-group aesthetic of the decade.

In 1966 The Ronettes opened for The Beatles on their last world tour, the only girl group to do so — and broke racial barriers while they were at it. They were inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2007 by Keith Richards of The Rolling Stones, which at one point had opened for The Ronettes.

The Ronettes disbanded in 1967, and Talley turned her attention to Christian music.

“As a founding member of The Ronettes, along with her beloved cousins Ronnie and Estelle, Nedra’s voice, style and spirit helped define a sound that would change music,” The Ronettes’ tribute said. “Her contribution to the group’s story and their defining influence will live forever. Rest peacefully, dear Nedra. Thanks for the magic.”

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