Gladys Knight & the Pips gold. Knight still records and performs today. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, she sometimes leads the Saints Unified Voices choir. The group was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1996, the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 2001 and received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Rhythm & Blues Foundation in 1998. Gladys Knight & the Pips are ranked as the ninth most successful act in "The Billboard Top 40 Book of R&B and Hip-Hop Hits" (2005). They were also ranked No. 91 on VH1's "Top 100 Artists of
Gladys Knight & the Pips William and Eleanor Guest began performing together during Bubba's tenth birthday party after a record player malfunctioned. Shortly afterwards, the quintet agreed to form a group under the insistence of Gladys' mother Elizabeth Knight. They settled on the name "The Pips", inspired by the nickname of their cousin James "Pip" Woods. By 1955, the group began performing at the talent show circuit at their hometown of Atlanta, winning each talent show they performed on. This success allowed them a record contract with Brunswick Records in 1957. The group released two recordings that failed to chart. Despite this, the group was