Evelyn Thomas’ Daughter Wants to ‘Keep Her Legacy Alive’ After the ‘High Energy’ Singer’s Death at 70 (Exclusive)

Evelyn Thomas, the influential disco singer best known for her international hit song “High Energy,” has died. She was 70 years old.

The powerhouse vocalist died on Sunday, July 21, according to a Facebook post shared on X by her longtime producer and mentor Ian Levine. “It is hard for me to accept that my lifelong protege really has left us,” he wrote of Thomas, who’s largely credited for elevating the 1980s hi-NRG dance music scene. “Her music will outlive all of us.” No cause of death for the singer was disclosed.

Thomas’ daughter Yaya Diamond tells PEOPLE of her mother in a statement, “I am seriously sad at the passing of my mom. She was so strong and I am having a hard time right now, but she told me to continue her legacy.”

A fellow vocalist, Diamond plans to record one of her mom’s songs with Levine in the near future. She’ll also hold a celebration of life for Thomas on July 31, and fans can tune in on YouTube.

“There are many plans in the making to honor and to keep her legacy alive, but I can only focus on one thing at a time,” she adds. “You must understand we were very close, and she was the last of my parents. I will never be the same!”

Thomas, born in Chicago on Aug. 22, 1953, first made noise in the music scene with her Top 40 U.K. hit “Weak Spot,” per her Apple Music bio, just before the commercial craze of disco took off. The 1976 track, as well as another called “Doomsday,” was recorded by Levine, who, according to his social media post, Thomas had met and signed to the year prior.

That marked the start of the duo’s years-long working relationship, which continued in 1978 with Thomas’ debut album, I Wanna Make It on My Own. A few years later, the singer’s career would explode thanks to her world-renowned hit song “High Energy” — co-written and produced by Levine and Fiachra Trench — which was lauded by Rolling Stone for giving life to the staple Hi-NRG genre (an uptempo offshoot of disco music) that ruled gay clubs in the mid-’80s.

“‘High Energy’ was written uniquely and specifically for her,” Levine wrote of Thomas in his post, adding, “Nobody else in the world could have ever sung it.”

The definitive 1984 recording topped the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart for one week in its heyday and reached No. 85 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also “sold seven million records worldwide,” per Levine.

Thomas went on to record more albums like 1984’s High Energy and 1987’s Standing at the Crossroads, both in collaboration with musical partner Levine. However, the producer said the pair took a 20-plus-year break before reuniting in 2009 to record three more songs. They were estranged for 15 more years before reconnecting just months before Thomas’ death.

“Knowing that she was dying, she reached out to me in love,” wrote Levine, noting that he and Trench “dropped everything” to record one last track for the singer, “a wonderful uplifting song called ‘Inspirational.’”

According to the producer’s post, “She loved it and she really wanted to sing it, but her health deteriorated far too fast and she simply could not do it.”

In her memory, Thomas’ daughter Kimberly (who goes by the stage name YaYa Diamond) — who appeared in the 1984 music video for “High Energy” — intends to record the unreleased song as a tribute to her life and legacy.

Following the news of Thomas’ death, the singer penned a heartfelt tribute to her mother on Facebook, writing, “They called me and I wasn’t available so they called my husband and they gave him the news. she’s gone. The legacy that my mother left me is beyond words and the memories are undeniably beyond any monetary value.”

“I want to thank everyone for their prayers and kind words,” Kimberly added alongside photos of her and Thomas. “Now it’s time to heal and to plan. Evelyn Thomas is already missed. RIP mommy.”