Black History of Health: Toni Braxton

David Livingston/Getty Images Toni Braxton is known worldwide for her talents as a singer, songwriter, and actress. Before she started singing on a larger scale, though, she got her start in the local church choir. It wasn’t until the late ‘80s that Braxton and her sisters got attention as a singing group. In the early ’90s, Braxton was approached to do a duet with Babyface for the ‘Boomerang’ soundtrack. This recording launched her solo career and her debut album was released in 1993.  Since releasing that album, Braxton went on to release several albums and achieved notable awards like the Grammy Award for Best New Artist. Along with her singing career, she has had different acting roles and was the executive producer of ‘Braxton Family Values’.  Despite all her success, however, 2008 was a particularly hard year for Braxton. There were financial difficulties as well as problems with her health. It was in that year that she was diagnosed with lupus. In an interview with ‘Prevention’ magazine, she talked about the difficulty of not just being diagnosed but having to tell her children about all her hospital visits.  RELATED: Toni Braxton Undergoes Surgery: “My Main Coronary Artery Was 80% Blocked”...