Minnie Riperton

Minnie Riperton, born in Chicago on November 8, 1947, possessed a five-octave vocal range and achieved her greatest success with the ballad "Lovin' You." She studied music, drama, and dance at the Abraham Lincoln Center and considered an opera career. Her pop career began in 1961 with the Gems on Chess Records, where she also provided backing vocals for Fontella Bass, the Dells, and Etta James. After high school, she worked as a Chess receptionist and later released a solo single, "Lonely Girl,"...Read more