I just happened to catch this post, and “huh?”
Since when did she have anything before ‘83? Sure as heck noone ever heard of her.
Your post made me stop and check, and Wikipedia says this:
"After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she signed with Sire Records (an affiliate of Warner Bros. Records) in 1982 and released her self-titled debut album the following year."
I've got to track down the tune I heard in '79. I definitely remember her having a song that got a fair bit of rotation on the R&B stations in L.A.