Happy Blessed Birthday to seven-time Grammy Award-winner and "Empress of Soul", Gladys Knight (born May 28, 1944).
.
DID YOU KNOW: Gladys is Aaliyah's aunt. She married Barry Hankerson in 1974 and they divorced in 1979. They had a very heated custody battle with their son (Aaliyah's cousin) Shanga Ali. Hankerson. "I had gone through a nasty divorce, I spent over a million dollars looking for my son after he got kidnapped. And I was broke." Knight shared with LA Tines back in 2011. Barry doesn't stop the show for Gladys. She'd go on to win countless music awards and do tv programs.
She has been honored by numerous organizations for her dedication and selflessness to help those less fortunate. Some of these include NAACP Legal Defense Fund- Black Women Of Achievement; Congress Of Racial Equality- Creative Achievement; Shaw University- Honorary Doctorate Degree; and B’Nair B’Rith- Humanitarian Award.
Fast-Foward, Knight marries William McDowell in 2001 and are very much still together and happy.













