Singer and music legend Chaka Khan will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
According to the New York Post, Khan will receive the honor on Nov. 3 at Brooklyn’s Barclay Center.
She started her professional singing career 50 years ago, singing for the band Rufus in the 1970s after performing with other groups, per Biography.com.
The group gained wide success with its hit song “Tell Me Something Good,” selling over a million copies and winning a Grammy Award.
Due to Khan’s powerful voice and unique sound, the band changed its name to Rufus featuring Chaka Khan, and then Rufus Chaka Khan as Khan toyed with a solo career.
Then, in 1978, she debuted her first solo album “Chaka.” This featured the hit song, “I’m Every Woman,” which went on to be covered by Whitney Houston for the successful Bodyguard soundtrack.
The New York Post also reported Khan worked with Prince in 1979. When reflecting on that period of her career, she said, “I influenced him while he was an up-and-coming artist; he used to tell me that all the time.”
“And he influenced me. We fit musically very well. We did a great album together [1998’s ‘Come 2 My House’],” she said.
Throughout the 80s and early 90s, Khan became a funk legend, influencing singers like Erykah Badu, via Britannica, and Mariah Carey — who even credits Khan on the Mariah Carey influences playlist on Apple Music.
Khan has been nominated seven times, four with the band that made her famous, Rufus, and three as a solo artist.
Now that she is entering the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the New York Post noted she is not a competitive person. She stated, “I don’t live for prizes or trophies.”
“That’s not why I do what I do. I do what I do because I have to, you know what I’m saying? God gave me this gift to use. It’s not a competition,” Khan concluded.
