LOS ANGELES, California - Helen Reddy, the legendary Australian musician whose 'I Am Woman' song resonated with feminists in the 1970's passed away Tuesday in Los Angeles, Variety reports. 

Reddy's daughter and son, Traci and Jordan, confirmed the news in a joint statement that said: “It is with deep sadness that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, Helen Reddy, on the afternoon of September 29th 2020 in Los Angeles. She was a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and a truly formidable woman. Our hearts are broken. But we take comfort in the knowledge that her voice will live on forever.”

“I Am Woman” went to No. 1 in 1972 and was followed by further chart-toppers, “Delta Dawn” and “Angie Baby,” in 1973 and ’74. Reddy is also known for her hits “Leave Me Alone (Ruby Red Dress),” “You and Me Against the World,” “Ain’t No Way to Treat a Lady,” and “I Can’t Hear You No More.”

In addition to her iconic status as a singer, Reddy was deeply involved in the political arena and eventually took on a role in government for the state of California. In 1974, she became a naturalized United States citizen and was appointed by California Governor Jerry Brown to the California Department of Parks and Recreation. She served in this capacity for three years.

Reddy made the decision to leave the entertainment world in 2002 and focus on getting a degree in clinical hypnotherapy.

In 2006, Reddy published a memoir, “The Woman I Am.”

Around 2012, she returned to show business but only a few years later, in 2015 it was reported that the singer was suffering from dementia and under treatment at the Motion Picture and Television Fund's Samuel Goldwyn Center for Behavioral Health in Woodland Hills.

Her life story was turned into a 2019 feature film, “I Am Woman.”

On Tuesday, Reddy's ex-husband and one-time manager, Jeff Wald, said, “I am very sad to announce that my first wife of 18 years and the mother of my two oldest, Traci & Jordan,” has died. “Traci spent the morning with Helen and she passed soon after under the excellent care of the Motion & Television Home.”

Reddy was 78.