Linda Diane Creed, born on December 6, 1948, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, was a prominent American songwriter, lyricist, background singer, and record producer. She grew up in a Jewish family and was musically active during her time at Germantown High School, where she led her own band, Raw Soul. After a brief stint in New York working as a secretary at Mills Music, Inc., Creed returned to Philadelphia, which inspired her song "I'm Coming Home."

Her career took off in 1970 when Dusty Springfield recorded her song "Free Girl." That same year, she began a fruitful collaboration with Thom Bell at Philadelphia International Records. Together, they crafted numerous hits for the Stylistics, including "Stop, Look, Listen (To Your Heart)" and "You Make Me Feel Brand New," as well as for the Spinners with songs like "Ghetto Child" and "The Rubberband Man." Creed also contributed background vocals on several tracks for these groups.

Despite being diagnosed with breast cancer at 26, Creed continued to work, notably teaming up with composer Michael Masser to write "The Greatest Love of All" for the Muhammad Ali biopic, The Greatest. Originally recorded by George Benson in 1977, the song became a hit and was later covered by Whitney Houston, reaching number one in 1986. Creed passed away from breast cancer on April 10, 1986, at the age of 37, just weeks before Houston's version topped the charts.

In her memory, the Linda Creed Breast Cancer Organization was established to support women in Pennsylvania. Her contributions to music were recognized posthumously with her induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1992.