SUNDAY - Seventh Heaven

"Ahh, Yvette," they sigh in unison as they cruise through their Newark and East Orange N.J. hometowns. Their sigh represents the completion of a difficult task: searching for the perfect hairdresser. For the five women known as Sunday, the path leading to Yvette Shelton has been rough and winding, complete with bad weaves and too-tight braids.

Many inspirational women have nurtured sisters Tiffany, 19, Notasha, 21, and Tawanda, 23, and their cousins Stacey, 20, and Sharika, 19 before " Yvette of the magic hands," however. T list includes their grandmother, who has served as pastor of the group's Pentecostal church since 1976, and their mothers, who organized the choir in which they all started singing. But with their supercatchy single "I know", hitting the airwaves, and the February release of their self-titled soulful pop debut fast approaching. Sunday rely on the guidance of co-manager and fairy godmother Whitney Houston.

The ladies first met Houston in a Newark parking lot in 1995, a year after signing with long-time Houston associate Robyn Crawford. "Robyn walked over to us and said, 'She 's comin', y'all better do something,'" says Notasha, who co-wrote eight of the album's tracks, including "I Know"." We sang "Baby,' by Brandy. After that, the pressure was off'" she says. Now, she talks to us as if we were her kids. Like, 'Bobbi Kristina , go upstairs. Girls, okay, hit that note,'" add lead singer Tiffany.

Houston, who on her 1998 song, "I Was Made To Love Him" shared billing with the group, says, " When I was starting out, I HAD people in my life like my mother (Cissy Houston), my cousin Dionne Warwick, and Aretha (Franklin), I learned a lot from those women. With Sunday, I'm passing on what was taught to me."

Sunday are beginning to carve their own niche in the crowded pantheon of pop music through guest appearances such as "Believe In Love" from the soundtrack to Down In The Delta. They use their phenomenal voices to convey the essence-a mix of girly innocence, feminine sass, and God-fearing divinity- and remind us that Sunday is more than just a day of rest.