[5] Since she always enjoyed writing poems, in the early '70s Jackson began crafting such proto-rap R&B singles as the outspoken "A Child of God (It's Hard to Believe)".

[7] Her mother died when she was a child and subsequently, she and her father moved to the New York City area and settled in Newark, New Jersey.

'"Jackson's recording career reportedly began on a dare to enter a 1964 talent contest at Harlem nightclub Smalls Paradise, which she won.

[9] The featured release was her version of Luther Ingram's million-seller, "(If Loving You Is Wrong) I Don't Want to Be Right",[9] for which she received a Grammy nomination.

[9] Over the next ten years, Jackson had a string of successful albums and numerous R&B chart entries, the biggest being her 1977 version of Merle Haggard's country hit "If We're Not Back in Love By Monday".

Jackson found herself without a label when Spring closed down in 1984, but in 1986, she signed with Jive Records in a deal that produced four albums and resulted in further R&B top ten hits with "Hot!

She appeared on an Elton John track in 1985, "Act of War", which was a top 40 hit in the UK, but failed to chart in the US.

[9] In 1991, she wrote, produced and starred in the successful touring play Young Man, Older Woman, based on her album of the same title for Jive.

(Extra Sexual Persuasion) features Jackson peering into a crystal ball that accentuates her cleavage; Back to the S**t!

After a lengthy hiatus from recording, she released her 2001 album, Not for Church Folk, which marked a return to her style with an Urban contemporary sound.

Broadcasting via remote from her home in Atlanta, Georgia, Jackson worked in afternoon drive-time from 3–6 pm on KKDA 730 AM, until January 6, 2012.

Other albums released on the Jive and Ichiban labels remain out of print, though some of those songs appear on compilation CDs.

On June 6, 2015, Jackson was inducted into the Official Rhythm & Blues Music Hall of Fame in Clarksdale, Mississippi.