CeCe Peniston was born in Dayton, Ohio and moved to Phoenix, Arizona at the age of nine. She attended grew up in Phoenix and took to entering beauty pageants where she was crowned Miss Black Arizona in 1989. CeCe’s music career began in 1990 when she signed to A&M Records and got her initial exposure doing featured vocals on Phoenix female rapper Overweight Pooch’s 1991 single “I Like It”.

Peniston released her debut album, ‘Finally’, in 1992 and the first single of the same name achieved #1 chart status on three Billboard charts and also hit No. 2 in the UK. The song was also used in the cult Australian film The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert. She was personally requested to perform by Aretha Franklin for her birthday, Pope John Paul II at the vatican and Bill Clinton at both of his inauguration ceremonies. Following the abolition of apartheid, Peniston was the first female entertainer to visit and perform in South Africa.