 Peak was born in 1943 in Asheville, North Carolina, and attended Stephens-Lee High School.She performed on local radio, and sang lead vocals with two local groups, the Tams (not The Tams) featuring William "PO Bill" Mills, and the Untils, a group of classmates who included Stanley Baird, Bynum Griffin and Clifford Cotton, some of whom went on to play with such stars as Chuck Jackson and James Brown.In 1960, she married Detroit, Michigan native Johnny Nero and moved to the city.