Happy Birthday: Chaka Khan, Aretha Franklin & Elton John

Multi Grammy Award winning singer and composer Chaka Khan (born March 23, 1953), got her start with the Baby Sitters, then was frontwoman for the funk band Rufus in the 1970's. She later embarked on a solo career that proved very successful. Her hits as a solo artist and with Rufus are "Tell Me Something Good", "Sweet Thing", "Ain't Nobody", "I'm Every Woman", "I Feel for You" and "Through the Fire".



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A salute to the undisputed Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin (born March 25, 1942). Although known for her Soul recordings, Franklin is adept at azz, Blues, R&B, and gospel music. Rolling Stone magazine ranked her atop its list of The Greatest Singers of All Time.

Franklin is one of the most honored artists by the Grammy Awards, with 18 competitive Grammys and two honorary Grammys. She has 20 #1 singles on the Billboard R&B Singles Chart and two #1 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: "Respect" (1967) and "I Knew You Were Waiting (For Me)" (1987), a duet with George Michael. Since 1961, she has scored a total of 45 Top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100. She also has the most million-selling singles of any female artist (14). Between 1967 and 1982 she had 10 #1 R&B albums---more than any other female artist.



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Sir Elton John (born March 25, 1947), the English pianist, singer/songwriter and composer, has sold more than 250 million records, making him one of the most successful artists of all time. His single "Candle in the Wind 1997" has sold over 33 million copies worldwide, and is the best selling single in Billboard history. He has more than 50 Top 40 hits, including seven consecutive No. 1 US albums, 56 Top 40 singles, 16 Top 10, four No. 2 hits, and nine No. 1 hits. He has won six Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award and a Tony Award. In 2004, Rolling Stone ranked him Number 49 on its list of the 100 greatest artists of all time.

John was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994. He has been heavily involved in the fight against AIDS since the late 1980s, and was knighted in 1998.