[youtube id=”5Y9DYGiDL1o”]Rapture was Anita Baker’s breakout album that introduced her voice to the world. The Detroit-bred singer had spent time singing in nightclubs as a teenager before joining the group Chapter 8. The band released one album and had two songs that were played on local radio; “Ready For Your Love” and “I Just Want To Be Your Girl.” The group was dropped by their label Ariola because of a buyout from Arista which opened the door for Baker to become a solo artist. Her first album, The Songstress, produced the top ten hit “Angel” but she did not reach stardom until Rapture. Baker co-wrote “Sweet Love” with Louis A. Johnson and Gary Bias and it took off as the second single from the album. Baker’s contralto voice and her musical arrangements were influenced by jazz and it gave her style a different kind of individual classiness. “Sweet Love” did well internationally on the charts and earned Baker and her co-writers a Grammy for Best R&B Song in 1987. Rapture also won a Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. Baker recorded several songs that are regarded as classics of the ’80s and ’90s and she is recognized as an iconic singer of that time. But “Sweet Love” will always be remembered as the point where she transformed from a local singer into a worldwide star. In 2018, Baker went on a Farewell Tour that was praised and trended heavily on social media. In December of 2018, it was announced that Baker will have Las Vegas residency in 2019.Â
