Having won the much-fabled amateur night at the Apollo Theater, Dionne and The Gospelaires went on to do background singing.

"A young man approached all the groups performing on this particular show and asked if they could do a background session at Savoy Records in Newark," she told Today. "So I spoke up and told the man that my group would do it."

"He said OK and asked us to meet him at the Savoy Records studios, where we did a session with Sam 'The Man' Taylor, a big-toned saxophone player, and Nappy Brown, a popular R&B and blues singer," she added. "As a result of that first date, the Gospelaires fast became the female voices of choice for background work in New York."

In no time, Dionne became one of the most sought-after recording artists with chart-toppers like "Dionne."