'80s Funk Legend Hit the Charts With Best-Selling Album 51 Years Ago Today
- - '80s Funk Legend Hit the Charts With Best-Selling Album 51 Years Ago Today
Yasmine ColemanDecember 5, 2025 at 7:56 PM
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(Photo by Darren Gerrish/WireImage for Fashion Trust Arabia)
Chaka Khan has been dominating the music scene for decades, but her early releases are still timeless classics, resonating with fans even after all these years.
On Friday, Dec. 5, the funk icon's Instagram account marked the anniversary of RUFUSIZED, the gold-selling third studio album from Rufus featuring the powerhouse vocalist.
"Released in 1974 on ABC Records, it was the band’s second album that year and a defining moment in their rise," the social media post pointed out.
Khan got her start as part of Chicago soul band Rufus, featuring Kevin Murphy (keyboard), Tony Maiden (guitar/vocals), Bobby Watson (bass/vocals), André Fischer (drums), and later, David "Hawk" Wolinski (keyboard/vocals), and John "JR" Robinson (drums).
Related: ’80s Funk Icon Chaka Khan ‘Marks a Historic Moment’ in New Release With Rock Legend
Some of their most well-known hits include "Tell Me Something Good," "Sweet Thing," "Do You Love What You Feel," and "Ain't Nobody."
Marking 51 years since the release of the best-selling project, the social media upload continued to highlight some of its success: "RUFUSIZED reached #7 on the Billboard album chart & went on to earn Gold certification. The album delivered one of the group’s most enduring hits, 'Once You Get Started,' which climbed to #10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #4 on the R&B chart."
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In the comments section, fans celebrated the major anniversary and her enduring impact in music.
"That's when I discovered my idol!!!!❤️❤️," one declared, while another said, "Congratulations Lady Chaka, we've been grooving with you since then!! Beautiful music!! 👑✨️🌟🎊🎉❤️❤️."
A third dubbed the soul songstress "The BADDEST On the planet CHAKA KHAN 😍❤️🚀💪🏾🙌🏾."
More comments read, "A young Chaka… My Fav ❤️❤️❤️❤️," "My favorite ❤️! Thank you for the music!" and "What a beautiful thang!"
Currently, the "Through the Fire" songstress is seeing renewed success as she continues to perform live shows as part of The Queens Tour alongside Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, and Stephanie Mills. The next set of concerts kicks off on Feb. 12, 2026, in Jacksonville, Fla.
Next: ’80s Funk Legend Chaka Khan Hit the Charts With ‘One of the Best Albums’ 43 Years Ago Today
This story was originally published by Parade on Dec 6, 2025, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
