Stevie Wonder’s fortune is projected to exceed $200 million as of September 2022. American multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and record producer Stevie Wonder was born in Saginaw, Michigan.
Many music industry insiders and fans alike rank Wonder among the most popular and critically acclaimed artists of the 2000s.
Earlier Years
Hardaway, Stevland On May 13, 1950, Judkins entered the world. He was born in Saginaw, Michigan. He is the third of six children born to Calvin Judkins and singer-songwriter Lula Mae Hardaway.
Six weeks early, Wonder was born. Both the high levels of oxygen in the incubator and the fact that he was born prematurely contributed to his eventual blindness, a medical condition known as retinopathy of prematurity.
At the age of four, Stevie’s parents separated. Stevie and his family relocated to Detroit after their mother got a job there. He was a member of the Baptist Church choir when he was a young man.
Stevie had a natural talent for music and picked up the piano, drums, and harmonica at a young age. Wonder’s blindness enhanced his sensitivity to sound, allowing him to compose music that was rich in texture and nuance.
Motown’s CEO Berry Gordy quickly saw his skill, and he joined the label in 1961. He was 11.
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Career
Motown put together a five-year deal for Stevie Wonder in which all income would be held in a trust until he reached 21. His mom and he received a weekly allowance of $2.50, which is almost $21 in today’s money.
At the young age of 11, he issued his debut CD, “Tribute to Uncle Ray,” which featured cover versions of Ray Charles’s songs. After that, an instrumental CD titled “The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie” was released.
The year 1962 was nearing its close when Stevie first performed with the Motortown Revue. The 20 minutes of his performance at the Regal Theater in Chicago were recorded and released as “Recorded Live: The 12-Year-Old Genius” in 1963.
The album’s lead song, “Fingertips,” was a smashing success. Wonder had a string of singles between 1968 and 1970, including “I Was Made to Love Her,” “For Once in My Life,” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours.”
His debut self-produced single, “Signed, Sealed, Delivered I’m Yours,” was a smashing success. Wonder, then only 20, wed fellow musician and singer-songwriter Syreeta Wright in September 1970.
The following record, 1971’s “Where I’m Coming From,” had contributions from both Wright and Wonder. On May 13, 1971, Wonder reached the age of 21, at which point he was free to leave Motown.
Due to Wonder’s groundbreaking new contract with Motown Records, he now receives a far greater royalty rate than any other artist in Motown Records’ history. In March of 1972, Wonder released “Music of My Mind” for Motown.
The album “Talking Book,” which includes the singles “Superstition” and “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” was released at the end of 1972. Three Grammys were split between the two tracks.
The 1973 album “Innervisions” included the singles “Higher Ground” (a Top 5 hit on the pop charts) and “Living for the City” (No. 8). The R&B versions of both songs topped the charts.
Three further Grammys, including Album of the Year, were bestowed for “Innervisions.” The album sits pretty at number 23 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.
Superstition, “Sir Duke,” “You Are the Sunshine of My Life,” “Mon Cherie Amour,” and “I Just Called to Say I Love You” are just a few of Wonder’s most well-known songs. The albums “Talking Book,” “Innervisions,” and “Songs in the Key of Life” are among his most well-known works.
Wonder has won more Grammys than any other male solo artist, with a total of 25.
Activist efforts on behalf of political causes, such as his successful 1980 campaign to get Martin Luther King, Jr.’s birthday recognized as a federal holiday in the United States, also garners him a great deal of respect and admiration.
When it came time to induct new members into the Soul Music Hall of Fame in December 2012, Stevie Wonder was the clear choice of fans.
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Personal Life
Wonder has nine offspring from five different women, the result of his three marriages. He wed Syreeta Wright, a member of the Motown music group, in 1970. In 1972, they divorced civilly after several years of marriage.
From 2001 until 2012, he was married to fashion designer Kai Millard. He tied the knot with Tomeeka Bracy in 2017.
Aisha Morris, Wonder’s eldest kid, was born in 1975. Yolanda Simmons is her mother; Wonder met her when she applied for a secretarial position at his publishing company. Wonder’s smash hit “Isn’t She Lovely” was written about her.
She has followed her dad on tour and in the studio as his backup singer. They welcomed her son Keita Wonder Simmons in 1977.
Wonder and his then-girlfriend Melody McCully welcomed their son Mumtaz Morris in 1983. He’s never been open about the woman who gave birth to his children, but we know his daughter Sophia and son Kwame.
Kierland and Mandla are the sons he and his second wife, Kai Millard, raised. Nia, Wonder’s ninth child, was born in December 2014; she is his second daughter with Tomeeka Robyn Bracy. Wonder’s first child with Bracy was born anonymously.
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