hypersongs

Chaka Khan

A Chicago singer who joined Rufus in 1972, went solo in 1978 with "I'm Every Woman" and had a hit with Prince's "I Feel for You"; "Ain't Nobody", written by the Rufus keyboardist Hawk Wolinski, was the group's last big record.

Chicago and Rufus

Chaka Khan was born Yvette Marie Stevens on March 23, 1953 in Chicago and raised in Hyde Park on the South Side. She formed a girl group, the Crystalettes, at 11 with her sister Taka, received her Yoruba-derived name at 13, and in 1970 briefly replaced Baby Huey as the lead of Baby Huey and the Babysitters. In 1972 she joined Rufus after Paulette McWilliams recommended her as a replacement and taught her the material. Rufus had begun as a precursor group formed in Chicago in 1968 by former members of the American Breed, became Smoke in 1969 and Ask Rufus in 1970, and took its name from an advice column in Mechanix Illustrated. It signed to ABC in 1973 and was billed as Rufus featuring Chaka Khan from 1974.

"Tell Me Something Good", written for her by Stevie Wonder, reached number three on the Hot 100 in 1974 and won a Grammy, and "You Got the Love" reached number 11 and number one on the R&B chart. Rags to Rufus (1974) went platinum, and Rufusized (December 1974, produced by Bob Monaco at the Record Plant in Los Angeles) went gold with "Once You Get Started" and "Stop on By". Rufus featuring Chaka Khan (November 1975) reached number one on the soul albums chart. The final Rufus line-up was Kevin Murphy on keyboards, Tony Maiden on guitar, Bobby Watson on bass, Hawk Wolinski on keyboards and John Robinson on drums.

Solo

She signed a solo deal with Warner Bros. in 1978, and Chaka (October 12, 1978), produced by Arif Mardin at Atlantic Studios in New York, included "I'm Every Woman" by Ashford and Simpson and reached number 12 on the Billboard 200 and number two on the R&B chart; AllMusic's Andy Kellman called it a near-total break from Rufus. Naughty (1980), What Cha' Gonna Do for Me (1981) and Chaka Khan (1982, with a Grammy for "Be Bop Medley") followed. I Feel for You (October 1, 1984) had the Prince song as its title track, with a Melle Mel rap and Stevie Wonder on harmonica, reaching number three on the Hot 100 and number one in the UK. She sang "Higher Love" with Steve Winwood (1986), "I'll Be Good to You" with Ray Charles and Quincy Jones (1990) and won a Grammy for The Woman I Am (1992).

Come 2 My House (1998) was on Prince's NPG label, and Funk This (2007), produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, won the 2008 Grammy for best R&B album, with "Disrespectful" with Mary J. Blige number one on the US dance chart. Hello Happiness (February 15, 2019) was her first album in twelve years. She was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for Musical Excellence in 2023, presented by Jazmine Sullivan, and curated the Meltdown festival in London. Wikipedia counts 11 Grammy wins, including a Lifetime Achievement award in 2026, while GRAMMY.com in 2024 says 10. Her autobiography Chaka! Through the Fire appeared in 2003.

Albums

  • Stompin' at the Savoy - Live 1983 · live · Warner Bros.

    Rufus's last album with Chaka Khan, live at the Savoy plus four new studio tracks including "Ain't Nobody".

Songs

  • Ain't Nobody Stompin' at the Savoy - Live · 1983

    A Rufus and Chaka Khan record written by the keyboardist Hawk Wolinski around a synthesizer loop and a Linn drum machine; number one on the R&B chart in 1983.

Sources

  1. Chaka Khan, Wikipedia
  2. Rufus (band), Wikipedia
  3. Chaka Khan, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
  4. Chaka Khan, Living Legends, GRAMMY.com (2024-11-22)