Lynda Laurence the departure of Florence Ballard in 1967 and lead singer Diana Ross in 1970, was about to lose another member of the group, Cindy Birdsong, who was expecting a baby. Birdsong originally replaced Tucker in the group The Ordettes, later to be named Patti LaBelle & the Bluebelles, so it was ironic that Tucker's sister, Laurence took Birdsong's place as a backing vocalist. At this time, Jean Terrell was the lead singer of The Supremes. Laurence joined the group around the time the group issued their "Floy Joy" album, and appeared on the cover with Terrell and Wilson, though Birdsong
Mary Birdsong Velma Von Tussle, the bigoted, pushy stage mother and television producer. Birdsong left the production on April 6, 2008. She then performed her one-woman show "3 Days in the Tub: A Mama Drama" in Los Angeles at Comedy Central Stage (September 2010) & the Fake Gallery (November 2010), and in New York City at Joe's Pub (January 2011). before going to San Francisco to play Mona Ramsey in ACT's adaptation of Armistead Maupin's "Tales of the City". Together with author Justin Halpern ("Shit My Dad Says") and comic Jen Kober ("American Reunion"), Birdsong performed as a member of the May