Grammy Award-winning singer Chaka Khan, formerly with the band Rufus, is famous for an array of hit songs like "I'm Every Woman," "Ain't Nobody," and "Through the Fire."

Khan first exploded on to the music scene in the 1970s. She formed her first group, the Crystalettes, with her sister Yvonne when she was only 11 years old. The sisters later became involved in the Afro-Arts Theater and started another musical group known as the Shades of Black. In 1969, Khan became active in the black power movement, joining the Black Panther Party and working with the organization's free breakfast program for children. Around this time, she took on a new name: Chaka Adunne Aduffe Yemoja Hodarhi Karifi. She also said goodbye to her formal education, dropping out from high school.

In the early 1970s, after performing with a few other groups, Khan joined the band Rufus, which had a strong R&B and funk sound. The world got its first taste of Khan’s powerhouse vocals when the group released its debut album in 1973, which spawned such modest hits as "Whoever's Thrilling You" and "Feel Good." The follow-up album, "Rags to Rufus," was a smash hit commercially and critically. Stevie Wonder penned for the band the hit single "Tell Me Something Good," which sold more than a million copies. The group also scored a Grammy Award for best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo, Group or Chorus for the song.

While she recorded with Rufus until the early 1980s, Khan made an impressive debut as a solo artist in the late 1970s. In 1978 she released "Chaka," which featured the No. 1 R&B hit and empowerment anthem "I'm Every Woman," written by Nicholas Ashford and Valerie Simpson. Khan's second solo album, "1980's Naughty," offered the popular singles "Clouds," also penned by Ashford and Simpson, and "Papillon (aka Hot Butterfly)." And in a twist of synchronicity, she won two Grammy Awards as a solo artist and one as a member of Rufus in 1983. The next year, however, Chaka the solo artist reigned supreme. Covering a Prince song, she made major moves on the charts with "I Feel for You," a top 5 smash hit. It also won Khan another Grammy Award in 1984. She won another Grammy in 1990 for her duet with the legendary Ray Charles on "I'll Be Good to You," from Quincy Jones' 1989 "Back on the Block" album, and another one in 1992 for "The Woman I Am."

In the early 1990s, Khan left the United States for London to raise her two children. Her daughter Milini was born in 1973 and her son Damien was born in 1979. While there, she branched out into acting, appearing as Sister Carrie in the musical "Mama, I Want to Sing." Near the end of the decade, she established the Chaka Khan Foundation, which provides education programs to at-risk children and helps low-income families with autistic children.

In 2002, Chaka Khan scored her eighth Grammy Award — this time for her cover of Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On" with the Funk Brothers. The next year, she shared her life story with the world in her autobiography, "Chaka! Through the Fire." In it, she detailed her career as well as her years of substance abuse. Khan described the loneliness she felt while touring. She was often away from her two children, which only compounded her sadness and guilt. With her life on track, Khan experimented with different musical styles. She did an album of standards with the London Symphony Orchestra entitled "ClassiKhan," released in 2004. In 2008, Khan made her Broadway debut and appeared as the character Sofia in the musical "The Color Purple," based on the book by Alice Walker.

Khan was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes in 2011, which she fought against with an impressive loss of weight after finding out. Khan has only recorded occasionally in more recent years and has continued to perform live. She returned to the airwaves in 2016 with the single "I Love Myself," with portions of sales going to the domestic abuse organization Face Forward as well as STOMP Out Bullying, and later sang with two of her siblings on the dance music track "House of Love," by FOMO. In July 2016, Khan announced that she and her sister Yvonne (aka Taka Boom), would be entering rehab due to prescription drug addictions, having been moved to do so after the overdose-related death of Prince.

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