American singer Yvette Marie Stevens, better known by her stage name Chaka Khan, was born on March 23, 1953. She began her career in the 1970s as the main vocalist of the funk band Rufus, and her career has lasted for more than five decades. With “I Feel for You” in 1984, the “Queen of Funk” Khan became known as the first R&B performer to have crossover success with a rapper. Khan has amassed eleven Grammy Awards and a global record sales total of over 70 million albums.
She won four gold singles, four gold albums, and two platinum albums with Rufus. Khan has three gold singles, three gold albums, and one platinum album to her credit during her solo career. She has worked with a variety of artists, including Mary J. Blige, Chicago, De La Soul, Guru, Ray Charles, Quincy Jones, Steve Winwood, Ry Cooder, Robert Palmer, and Ry Cooder. She was recognized as the 65th-most successful dance club musician of all time by Billboard magazine in December 2016. On the original VH1 list of the 100 Greatest Ladies of Rock & Roll, she came in at number seventeen. Khan has been nominated for induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame four times as a member of Rufus starring Chaka Khan and three times as a solo artist; the first nomination came in 2012 while Khan was a member of Rufus.