Liz Torres

Arguably the Queen of House, Liz Torres was born in Puerto Rico in the early '60s and moved with her family to Chicago just three years later. She sang in her church while growing up but converted to house music in 1985 after hearing it on the street. After several singles in the late '80s, "Touch of Love" appeared on Britain's Black Market label in 1988. The classic track caught the eye of Jive Records, which signed Torres to a contract the same year. The company mistreated her, though; her album The Queen Is in the House wasn't released until 1990 and Jive refused to promote it. Liz Torres then recorded "Out of My Life" for the Streetside label and all but disappeared until the mid-'90s, when she staged a major comeback with "Set Urself Free," on Radikal Records. ~ John Bush