Chaka Love!

I grew up listening to Chaka Kahn, and now Chaka Khan has become a musical staple in my home. My Father being the incredibly talented and diverse drummer he is, played in many genres of music in the 70’s and 80’s and has always had a fascination with Ms. Kahn. As a young girl this of course created some mystery around her as an artist. In addition my father called me Chaka through out my life. I did have a mass amount of hair that was as full and free, but I couldn’t sing a lick. My rhetorical analysis of the song “What cha gonna do for me” left me with the question, why did he call me Chaka? Ironically I never asked him that question until I started working on this project. I did get an answer, but we will get back to that later. Now I would like to tell you a little about Ms. Chaka Khan.

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Known for her powerhouse voice, and R&B/ funk style Chaka Khan is considered one of the Divas of R&B. Joining the group Rufus in the 1970’s Chaka Khan worked hard to become respected as a lead vocalist in the band Rufus. Equality for woman was just breaking ground, so this wasn't an easy task.

The band Rufus, famous for songs like “Tell me something good” climbed to success with Chaka, and later changed their name to Rufus featuring Chaka Khan, and finally Rufus and Chaka Khan. This acknowledgment was telling of her talent, strength and diligence as a female artist in the 70s.

Launching her solo career in 1978 Chaka Khan released the number 1 R&B hit and women’s anthem “I’m every woman”. As the struggle for gender equality had taken flight, Chaka Khan was a voice for the struggle. “I’m every woman” became and continues to be an anthem for the feminist movement and gender equality.

Chaka Khan's incredibly strong presence on stage intensified with her passionate voice is a gift to us all.