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Chaka Khan Biography

Birth Name:
Yvette Marie Stevens
Birth Place:
Great Lakes, Illinois, United States
Profession
Singer

Fast Facts

  • Formed her first group, the Crystalettes, with her sister Yvonne in 1964
  • Changed her name to Chaka Adunne Aduffe Yemoja Hodarhi Karifi at age 16 at a Yoruba religious ceremony
  • Established the Chaka Khan Foundation, which addresses issues of domestic violence and youth education, in 1999
  • Received an Honorary Doctorate in Music from Boston's Berklee College of Music in 2004
  • Created her own line of gourmet chocolates, called Chakalates; proceeds finance her charitable foundation
  • Made her Broadway debut in 2008 in the stage adaptation of The Color Purple
  • At the time she got the Broadway role, she was asked by the New York Times about her interest in Scientology; she replied that while she'd studied it, she was, instead, a member of "the religion of the Church of Chaka Khan
  • " Received a Hollywood Walk of Fame star in 2011
  • She performed her enduring hit from her days with Rufus, "Tell Me Something Good," with Stevie Wonder to mark the occasion
  • Her band, Rufus With Chaka Khan, received a 2012 nomination for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Relationships

  • Mark Stevens -- Brother
  • Milini Khan -- Daughter
  • Hassan Khan -- Ex-husband
  • Richard Holland -- Ex-husband
  • Charles Stevens -- Father
  • Doug Rasheed -- Husband
  • Sandra Coleman Stevens -- Mother
  • Tammy McCrary -- Sister
  • Yvonne Stevens -- Sister
  • Damien Patrick Holland -- Son