3. Synopsis
Anita Denise Baker was born on January 26, 1968 in Toledo, Ohio. She was
abandoned by her mother at the age of 2 and was raised by a foster family
in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 12 her foster parents died and was then
raised by her foster sister.
At the age of 16, Anita started singing R&B music in night clubs and after
one performance, she was discovered by David Washington who offered
her an audition for the funk band Chapter 8 that he was a leader of.
She joined this group in 1975 and were successful for the amount of tours
they did and Baker then secured a record deal with Ariola Records 4 years
later.
However when Ariola was bought out by Arista records, they dropped
Chapter 8 as they thought that Anita didn’t have ‘star potential’
She returned to Detroit and became a waitress and a receptionist at a law
firm.
4. Success
In 1982, a former associate of Ariola records, called Anita Baker and
convinced her to start a solo career under his label, Beverly Glen. In 1983
she released her first debut album ‘The Songstress’. Singles such as
"Angel" reached number five on the R&B charts in late 1983 and “You're the
Best Thing Yet" followed it in the R&B top 40 early the following year so both
became Baker’s top ten singles.
In 1986, Baker released her second album ‘Rapture’. A mid-tempo ballad
single “Sweet love“ became her first pop hit, reaching number 8 on the
Billboard hot 100 and also reaching the UK Top 20.
By 1988 the album sold over 8 million copies worldwide, 5 million of which
were sold in the United States alone.
