Did you know that Minnie Riperton was widely regarded as the artist who popularised the use of the whistle register in contemporary music?

The mother of comedian Maya Rudolph, Riperton was classically trained to sing at the extremes of her vocal range, which spanned over a reported five octaves. The songbird used what she learned from Opera and applied her skills to R&B, Soul, Funk and Pop music as a member of the band Rotary Connection and later as a solo artist.

Riperton is widely known for her lone #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, ‘Lovin’ You’, despite scoring numerous successes on the R&B charts. Tragically, her career was cut short in 1979 when she died as a result complications related to breast cancer at the age of 31.

Several artists lauded Riperton as a major influence. In addition to being Stevie Wonder’s muse in the 1970s, she also inspired the vocal stylings of dozens of other acts, including Michael Jackson, Jill Scott, Christina Aguilera, Leona Lewis, Chante More, Shanice and Janelle Monae. Of course, Riperton’s most popular fan is probably Mariah Carey who has noted her as the biggest influence on her singing.

Watch Riperton perform the R&B classic ‘Inside My Love’ Below:

Now you know!