What Happened? Chaka Khan

Chaka Khan

 Rufus

In 1967, The American Breed Gary Luizo, Al Ciner, Charles (Chuck) Colbert and Lee Graziano had a top ten hit with the classic rock single, "Bend Me, Shape Me". After much success, Ciner, Colbert and Graziano (without Luizo who pursued a successful production career) created a new group, adding Kevin Murphy on keyboards and Vern Pilder from the bar band Circus. They re-emerged in 1969 under the name Smoke. In 1970, female vocalist Paulette McWilliams and vocalist James Stella were added and the group's name changed again to Ask Rufus. Willie Weeks would replace Vern Pilder.

 In early 1972 Epic dropped their contract and James Stella was replaced by keyboardist and vocalist Ron Stockert. Former Curtis Mayfield and Jerry Butler drummer Andre Fischer, replaced Lee Graziano. Colbert and Fischer approached and recruited the eighteen-year-old vocalist Yvette Stevens at a south-side club called the "Pumpkin Room" where she sang with a local Chicago group called Lock and Chain led by drummer Scotty Harris.

Yvette Marie Stevens was born in Chicago, Illinois. Raised in Chicago's rough South Side housing projects, Khan was the eldest of five children to Charles Stevens and Sandra Coleman.  Khan was raised as Roman Catholic. Khan attributed her love of music to her grandmother, who introduced her to jazz music as a child. Khan became a fan of R&B music as a preteen and at eleven formed her first all-female singing group the Crystalettes, which also included her sister Taka. In the late 1960s, Khan and her sister formed the vocal group Shades of Black and joined the Black Panther Party after befriending fellow member, activist and Chicago native Fred Hampton in 1967. While a member, she was given a name change to Chaka Adunne Aduffe Hodarhi Karifi by an African shaman. In 1969, she left the Panthers, dropped out of high school, having attended Calumet High School and Kenwood High School (now Kenwood Academy), and began to perform in small groups around the Chicago area, first performing with the group Lyfe, which included her then boyfriend Hassan Khan. whom she'd later marry. She her stage name to Chaka Khan.

In 1972 the group contacted friend and newly-hired ABC Dunhill A&R executive Bob Monaco and flew him to Chicago to watch the group perform for consideration to be one of his first signings. Monaco returned to Los Angeles, convinced the label to give him a demo budget and then quickly returned to Chicago where the group recorded eleven songs in two days at Marty Feldman's Paragon Studios. After taking the demo tapes back to ABC Dunhill the group was immediately asked to sign a long term recording contract. Khan, who at eighteen she was still a minor, had to have her mother participate. The singer had just married Hassan Khan, who was a bassist of a former band that she fronted.

The group then drove to Los Angeles and recorded their first "Rufus" album at Quantum Recording Studios in Torrance, California. That album was released in 1973. While the songs "Whoever's Thrilling You (Is Killing Me)" and "Feel Good" (both songs led by Khan) brought the group some attention from R&B radio stations, the album itself had minimal sales and the Stockert-led "Slip & Slide" failed to catch major attention from pop radio.

The group quickly re-entered the same studio to record their follow-up album Rags to Rufus that included the Stevie Wonder song "Tell Me Something Good," Ray Parker Jr.'s and Khan's "You Got The Love" and Dennis Belfield’s "In Love We Grow," and "Smokin' Room." Stockert, Ciner and Belfield would leave the group shortly after the album was completed. Los Angeles-based keyboardist Nate Morgan replaced Stockert. Additionally, Tony Maiden and bassist Bobby Watson, also from Los Angeles, were recruited by drummer Andre Fischer and asked to join the group. Maiden's, Watson's and Morgan's addition to Rufus added a unique sound to the group, bringing a stronger funk and jazz influence to complement Chaka's now emerging powerful lead vocals.

Rags to Rufus was released in 1974 and two of its singles — the Stevie Wonder-penned "Tell Me Something Good" and the Parker-Khan composition, "You Got the Love" — became smash hits leading to Rags to Rufus going platinum and also landed them opening spots for the tours of several top stars including (Stevie Wonder, Cheech and Chong and the Hues Corporation. "Tell Me Something Good" also brought Rufus their first Grammy Award. Due to Khan's increasing popularity Rufus and ABC appropriately billed the group as Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan. With this new billing, the band recorded and quickly released their next album, Rufusized in 1974. Another platinum success, the group entered the top ten again with the funk singles, "Once You Get Started," "Stop On By," "I'm A Woman," and "Pack'd My Bags" (later sampled for Jody Watley's "Lovin' You So") and "Please Pardon Me (You Remind Me of a Friend)", penned by good friend Brenda Russell, which became popular among the group's legion of fans.

Heading into 1975, the group headlined their first major tour, with Khan attracting attention in concert reviews for her powerhouse vocals and sexy attire — so much so that when it came to do photo sets, Khan was often the only artist chosen to be featured on covers, mainly on magazines such as Jet, which Khan would be heavily featured on throughout her long career. Also due to her off-stage antics that added to her on-stage persona, the media billed Khan as "the wild child". Attention to Khan began to make things difficult for some of the group's members as they felt Khan's presence had overshadowed the entire band's output.

The group's fourth release, and the third major release where Khan was dominant lead singer, Rufus Featuring Chaka Khan, was released in 1975. The major hit off the album was a Khan and Tony Maiden composition titled "Sweet Thing" which reached the top five of the charts and became their fourth record to reach gold.

Despite the album's success as well as a second successful major tour that followed, it still didn't stop growing tensions within the group, particularly between Khan and longtime Rufus drummer Andre Fischer. During recording sessions of Ask Rufus, Khan had married Richard Holland (she had divorced her first husband Hassan Khan in 1974 prior to the birth of their child Milini), and the presence of Holland only made things worse between Khan and Fischer.

Ask Rufus would be released in 1977 and include the hits "At Midnight (My Love Will Lift You Up)", "Hollywood" and "Everlasting Love", the latter two songs becoming popular among Khan fans. Following a tour to promote Ask Rufus, Fischer finally left the group. He was followed out of the group by Nate Morgan. They were replaced by Richard "Moon" Calhoun and Dave "Hawk" Wolinski, respectively. The new lineup recorded the popular album, Street Player, which featured the popular Khan-composed ballad, "Stay". After first putting it off as a rumor, Khan confirmed to media reports that she was going solo, signing a deal with Warner Bros. Records. The decision strained relations between Khan and the other Rufus members.

Warner Bros. Records released Khan's self-titled debut album, which featured the crossover disco hit, "I'm Every Woman". Khan also was a featured performer on Quincy Jones' hit, "Stuff Like That", also released in 1978. Khan solo album sold more than Street Player, going platinum, thanks to the international Ashford & Simpson-composed single, "I'm Every Woman". Khan continued to promote the album into 1979. In early 1979, Calhoun would be replaced by John "J.R." Robinson as Rufus group's drummer in 1979.

Following the Calhoun replacement, another change came when ABC Records got absorbed by MCA, bringing the group to MCA as a result. While Khan promoted Chaka, Rufus put out a less favorably received Khan-less album, Numbers, which tanked. Khan returned to record with the band for the Quincy Jones-produced Masterjam. By now, Rufus and Khan were split in two, both acts being treated separately. Khan's superstardom helped Masterjam go gold thanks to the funk-laden disco recording, "Do You Love What You Feel".

Though Khan would later say that she was ready to leave Rufus upon the time she released Chaka in 1978, she discovered that she had two more albums left in her ABC/MCA contract with the band and agreed to fulfill her obligations. Following Masterjam, one of the contractual albums, and another Khan-less album, Party 'Til You're Broke, which bombed.

Khan released her second solo album, Naughty, which featured Khan on the cover with her six-year-old daughter Milini. The album yielded the minor disco hit "Clouds" and went gold. Also in 1980 she had a cameo appearance in the Blues Brothers movie with John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd as a church choir soloist.

 Rufus and Khan reunited for their last MCA album, Camouflage in 1981. The feelings of long overdrawn bad tensions were felt during album sessions with Khan recording her vocals without the band present with the band's instrumentation later added to Khan's vocals. The album failed to garner attention mainly due to Khan's solo obligations, which now included two more gold-certified studio albums, Naughty and What Cha' Gonna Do for Me. With the release of Camouflage, Khan was free to leave the group.

Following her exit in early 1982, the remaining members of Rufus released what became their final studio album, Seal in Red in 1983 which, like previous albums, went unnoticed.

In 1982, Khan issued two more solo albums, the jazz-oriented Echoes of an Era and a more funk/pop-oriented self-titled album. The latter album's track, the jazz-inflected "Bebop Medley", won Khan a Grammy.

Rufus band members sensed that their tenure was over and agreed to split on the terms they release a live album to commemorate the occasion. The band asked Khan to contribute to their final concert performance, and she obliged, reuniting with the group for what was to be a documentary film on their concert titled Stompin' At the Savoy. For some reason, Warner Bros. refused to release the film and instead released only the live album. The album included four Khan-led studio songs, including a Dave Wolinski composition titled "Ain't Nobody", which got attention when a producer for the film, Breakin' heard it while screening songs for the movie's soundtrack. Warner eventually released the song (with the billing Rufus and Chaka Khan) and the song became a top 30 Billboard Hot 100 hit, reaching number-one on the R&B chart and hitting number eight on the UK singles chart. The success of the track led to the band receiving its second Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

Following this success, Rufus went their separate ways for good with Khan continuing her career, becoming one of the most revered R&B artists of her generation with the release of the single, "I Feel for You", cementing her reputation as a superstar.

In 1990, she was a featured performer on another major hit when she collaborated with Ray Charles and Quincy Jones on a new jack swing cover of The Brothers Johnson's "I'll Be Good to You", which was featured on Jones' Back on the Block. The song reached number-eighteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and number-one on the Hot R&B chart, later winning Charles and Khan a Grammy for Best R&B Vocal Performance By a Duo or Group.

Khan returned with her first studio album in four years in 1992 with the release of The Woman I Am, which went gold thanks to the R&B success of the songs "Love You All My Lifetime" and "You Can Make the Story Right". Khan also contributed to soundtracks and worked on a follow-up to The Woman I Am which she titled Dare You to Love Me, which was eventually shelved.

In 1995, she provided a contemporary R&B cover of the classic standard, "My Funny Valentine", for the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack.

In 1996, following the release of her greatest-hits album, Epiphany: The Best of Chaka Khan, Vol. 1, Khan abruptly left Warner Bros. after stating the label had neglected her and failed to release Dare You to Love Me.

                                                       

In 1998, Khan signed a contract with Prince's NPG Records label and issued Come 2 My House, followed by the single "Don't Talk 2 Strangers", a cover of a 1996 Prince song. Khan later went on a tour with Prince as a co-headlining act. In 2000, Khan departed from NPG

In 2001, Rufus (Kevin Murphy, Tony Maiden, Bobby Watson, Dave Wolinski and J.R. Robinson) and Chaka Khan reunited for a brief tour, which Khan described in her autobiography, Chaka! Through the Fire (co-written with Tonya Bolden), in 2003. Khan and Maiden reunited on the modernized Rufus medley, "Pack'd My Bags"/ "You Got the Love", on Khan's double Grammy Award-winning 2007 album, Funk This. When discussing another potential reunion with Rufus during a 2008 interview with Billboard, Khan said the band's classic lineup (which includes Andre Fischer and Nate Morgan) had no plans on reuniting, with Khan stating that touring with Tony Maiden, one of the few Rufus band mates Khan kept a close friendship with, was the closest to another Rufus reunion. A lineup of Rufus including Bobby Watson and J.R. Robinson and Khan's daughter Milini started a short tour in 2008. Neither founding member Kevin Murphy, mainstay Tony Maiden nor Dave Wolinski participated in this tour.

Khan had an on-again, off-again struggle with alcoholism until 2005 declaring herself sober.

In 2004 released her first jazz covers album in twenty-two years with 2004's ClassiKhan. She also covered "Little Wing" with Kenny Olson on the album Power of Soul: A Tribute to Jimi Hendrix. Three years later, after signing with Burgundy Records, Khan released what many critics called a "comeback album" with Funk This, produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.

The album featured the hit, "Angel", and the Mary J. Blige duet, "Disrespectful". The latter track went to number one on the U.S. dance singles chart, winning the singers a Grammy Award, while Funk This also won a Grammy for Best R&B Album. The album was notable for Khan's covers of Dee Dee Warwick's "Foolish Fool" and Prince's "Sign o' the Times".

In 2006, Chaka’s son Damien Holland was accused of murder after 17-year-old Christopher Bailey was shot to death. Khan testified on her son's behalf defending her son's innocence. Holland claimed the shooting was an accident and was found not guilty.

In 2008, Khan participated in the Broadway adaptation of The Color Purple playing Ms. Sofia to Fantasia Barrino's Celie.

On May 19, 2011, Khan was given the Hollywood Walk of Fame star plaque on a section of Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles. Her family was present when the singer accepted the honor, as was Stevie Wonder, who had written her breakout hit "Tell Me Something Good".

In September 2011, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame committee announced that the band and Khan were jointly nominated for induction to the 27th annual class. They had been eligible since 1999 (with the committee counting the band's first album as Rags to Rufus rather than 1973's Rufus). It was their first year of nomination. Earlier in the year, Khan received a solo star at the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

In December 2011, Khan won permanent custody of her granddaughter, Daija Jade Holland, after reporting that her granddaughter's mother, girlfriend of Khan's son Damien Holland, was unable to raise her due to her drug addiction. It was reported that Khan's son was also addicted to drugs.

Khan rerecorded her song, Super Life, under the title "Super Life: Fear Kills, Love Heals" with Eric Benet, Kelly Price, and Luke James in tribute to Trayvon Martin, a teenager who was killed Feb. 26 2012. A number of celebrities also joined in the recording including Loretta Devine, Terry Crews, Eva Pigford, and reporter Kevin Frazier.

Chaka Khan preformed at the BET Awards 2012 preforming ‘’I’m EVERY Woman” a song she wrote and Whitney Houston remade for The Bodyguard album.