Bonnie Tyler, the Welsh singer whose unforgettable raspy voice powered some of the biggest anthems of the 1970s and 1980s, has died aged 75. Best known for Total Eclipse of the Heart, Holding Out for a Hero and It’s a Heartache, Tyler leaves behind a musical legacy full of drama, emotion and songs that still fill rooms the moment they begin.

Here are five things to remember about Bonnie Tyler.

1. She had a voice that could never be mistaken for anyone else

Bonnie Tyler did not have a neat, polished pop voice. She had something far more memorable. Her voice was smoky, cracked, powerful and full of feeling. It sounded lived-in. It sounded honest.

That famous rasp became her greatest gift. It gave every song a sense of urgency, whether she was singing about heartbreak, longing or strength. Many singers can hit the notes. Bonnie Tyler made people feel them.

2. Total Eclipse of the Heart became more than a hit

Released in 1983, Total Eclipse of the Heart became the song most people will immediately connect with Bonnie Tyler. Written by Jim Steinman, it was huge, dramatic and almost operatic in scale.

It was not a quiet love song. It was a thunderstorm of a record — full of longing, darkness and emotion. Decades later, it still appears on radio, television, film soundtracks, karaoke nights and playlists around the world. It is one of those rare songs that different generations seem to rediscover for themselves.

3. She gave the world proper singalong anthems

Bonnie Tyler’s career was never about one song alone. It’s a Heartache made her an international star in the late 1970s, while Holding Out for a Hero became one of the great power anthems of the 1980s.

Her songs were made for full-volume listening. They belonged in cars, kitchens, parties, school discos, theatres and arenas. They had the sort of choruses people did not just listen to — they joined in with.

4. She carried her Welsh roots with pride

Before the international success, Bonnie Tyler was Gaynor Hopkins from Skewen in South Wales. Her story was not one of instant manufactured fame. She began singing locally before building a career that eventually took her around the world.

That sense of grit stayed with her. There was always something grounded about Bonnie Tyler, even when the songs were enormous and theatrical. She had the glamour of an international star, but the voice of someone who sounded real.

5. Her music will keep finding new listeners

The best pop songs do not really disappear. They return at weddings, parties, concerts, television moments and late-night singalongs. Bonnie Tyler’s music has that quality.

Total Eclipse of the Heart, Holding Out for a Hero and It’s a Heartache will continue to be played because they still do what great songs should do: they make people feel bigger, braver and more emotional for a few minutes.

Bonnie Tyler’s legacy is not only in the records she sold or the charts she topped. It is in that unmistakable voice — raw, dramatic, emotional and completely her own.

She did not sound like anyone else. That is why she will be remembered.