Chaka Khan apologises for criticising Adele and Mariah Carey: 'I took the bait'

Chaka Khan has apologised for criticising a number of singers including Mariah Carey and Adele.

The Ain't Nobody singer was reacting to a recent Rolling Stone list that placed Khan as the 29th greatest singer of all time with Carey and Adele ranked ahead of her.

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After being told that Carey was ranked the fifth, Khan said on the Originals podcast: "That must be payola or some s*** like that."

When she found out that Adele was ahead of her in 22nd, Khan said: "Okay, I quit."

Khan also hit out at former collaborator Mary J Blige who was also ranked ahead of her. She said: "These b****** are blind as a m************ bat!"

The legendary singer has now apologised for her comments, saying: "Recently, I was asked about a list of the greatest singers of all time and instead of questioning the need for such a list, I was pitted against other artists and I took the bait."

She added: "As artists, we are unfairly put into boxes. Being an artist or musician is not a competition. It’s a gift, for which I am truly grateful. It was not my intention to cause pain or upset anyone.

"To anyone that felt this way, I sincerely apologise. I have always been about empowering others and I started a foundation for that very purpose."

There was a strong online reaction to Rolling Stone's ranking of the best singers of all time. Fans of Celine Dion protested outside of the magazine's offices after she was completely excluded from the list.

Kiss singer Gene Simmons also hit out at the list after he didn't make the cut and called the final ranking "skewed".

There was also controversy over the inclusion of many modern pop stars such as Billie Eilish, Usher and Lana Del Rey when the likes of Madonna, Bobby Womack, Jennifer Hudson and Tony Bennett.

Watch below: Chaka Khan apologises for shading Mariah Carey and Adele