caption years_active home_town birth_place module name birth_date signature residence image article_title birth_name occupation alma_mater
peniston , d.c. , on april 9 , 2011 performing at the cherry blossom parade in washington 1991 -- present phoenix , arizona , u.s. dayton , ohio , u.s. yes label = associated_acts = background = solo_singer genre = instrument = vocals cece peniston 6 september 1969 file : signature of cece peniston.svg glendale , arizona , u.s. cece peniston 2011.jpg cece peniston
 cecilia veronica peniston singer songwriter actress phoenix college
cece peniston

cece peniston -lrb- born cecilia veronica peniston ; september 6 , 1969 -rrb- is an american recording artist and former beauty queen .
in the early 1990s , she was one of the most successful dance club artists in the history of the u.s. `` billboard '' hot dance music/club play , scoring five number one hits in the chart within three years .
her signature song `` finally '' -lrb- # 5 in the hot 100 and # 2 in uk top 75 -rrb- became one of the biggest dance singles , selling three million copies worldwide .
peniston has performed at private engagements for aretha franklin 's private birthday party in detroit , michigan , pope john paul ii in rome at the vatican -lrb- as a member of the gospel band sisters of glory -rrb- and the 42nd president of the united states , bill clinton , during both of his inauguration ceremonies in washington , d.c. .
she was the first foreign female entertainer to perform in post-apartheid south africa .
on february 4 , 2011 , peniston signed a record deal with west swagg music group/bungalo records , with full distribution through universal music group distribution , and announced release of a new solo album 15 years after her last studio set -lrb- `` i 'm movin ' on '' from 1996 on a&m records -rrb- .
by the end of the year , however , only three digital singles had been issued including a new song called `` stoopid ! ''
, and two cover versions of her prior hits , `` keep on walkin ' '' and `` finally '' .
