"Redfoo Stefan Kendal Gordy (born September 3, 1975), better known by his stage name Redfoo, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, dancer, record producer, and DJ best known for being part of the musical duo LMFAO, and for their hit song, ""Party Rock Anthem."" Redfoo formed the duo with his nephew, Sky Blu, in 2006 and they released two studio albums before going solo in 2013. He is the youngest son of Motown Record Corporation founder Berry Gordy, Jr. Redfoo was born on September 3, 1975 to Berry Gordy, Jr., founder of the Motown record label, and writer-producer Nancy Leiviska."
"Rockwell (musician) Kennedy William Gordy (born March 15, 1964), better known by his stage name Rockwell, is an American former musician and singer-songwriter who was signed to the Motown label. Kennedy William Gordy aka Rockwell is the son of Motown founder and CEO Berry Gordy and Margaret Norton. His father named him Kennedy William after John F. Kennedy and William ""Smokey"" Robinson. To avoid the appearance of nepotism, he secured his record deal without his father's knowledge. Motown actually came up with the name Rockwell and the young Gordy agreed to the change because he believed he ""rocked well."" In"
"Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., born November 28, 1929) is an American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and its subsidiaries, which was the highest-earning African-American business for decades. Berry Gordy III (also known as Berry Gordy Jr.) was born on November 28, 1929 in Detroit, to the middle-class family of Berry Gordy II (also known as Berry Gordy Sr.), who had relocated to Detroit from Oconee in Washington County, Georgia, in 1922. The first Berry Gordy was"
"up any misconceptions regarding the label's demise. """" began previews at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre on March 11, 2013, and began regular performances there on April 14. The musical closed in January 2015. The UK version of Motown the Musical opened in the West End in January 2016. Berry Gordy went to the opening night. Gordy, who was married and divorced three times, has eight children: Hazel Joy, Berry IV, Terry James, Kerry Gordy, Sherry, Kennedy William, Rhonda Suzanne, and Stefan Kendal. His publishing company, Jobete, was named after his three eldest children, Joy, Berry and Terry. He had three children"
"legendary record label. Berry Gordy, Jr. founded Motown Records which rose to prominence during the 1960s and early 1970s with acts such as Stevie Wonder, The Temptations, The Four Tops, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Diana Ross & The Supremes, the Jackson 5, Martha and the Vandellas, The Spinners, Gladys Knight & the Pips, The Marvelettes, The Elgins, The Monitors, The Velvelettes and Marvin Gaye. Artists were backed by in-house vocalists The Andantes and The Funk Brothers, the Motown house band that was featured in Paul Justman's 2002 documentary film Standing in the Shadows of Motown, based on Allan Slutsky's"
"Gordy family The Gordys are an African-American family of businesspeople and music industry executives. They were born to Georgia-reared parents Berry ""Pops"" Gordy Sr. and Bertha Fuller Gordy and raised in Detroit, where most of the siblings played a pivotal role in the international acceptance of rhythm and blues music as a crossover phenomenon in the 1960s. The accomplishment is attributable to the creation of Motown, a company founded by the seventh-oldest sibling, Berry Gordy Jr. As a couple, Berry and Bertha owned several businesses, including a successful painting business that they established, and a construction firm. Berry Sr. (or"
"American singer Stevie Wonder for the song ""He Is A Cobra"", but it was a big ""disappointment"" for Cordy. ""Peeping Tom"" Rockwell appeared on ""Soul Train"" on February 2, 1985 (Season 14, Episode 17). Rockwell (musician) Kennedy William Gordy (born March 15, 1964), better known by his stage name Rockwell, is an American former musician and singer-songwriter who was signed to the Motown label. Kennedy William Gordy aka Rockwell is the son of Motown founder and CEO Berry Gordy and Margaret Norton. His father named him Kennedy William after John F. Kennedy and William ""Smokey"" Robinson. To avoid the appearance"
"was also a professional in bowling. His daughter Iris was married to singer Johnny Bristol. The eldest Gordy daughter, Esther (April 25, 1920 – August 24, 2011), born in Georgia, established herself early in business as a political campaigner for her husband, Detroit politician George Edwards. In the late 1950s, she formed a loan company named after her parents; in 1959, she helped her brother Berry with a $800 loan to start Tamla Records. She borrowed the proceeds from the college tuition fund their father had established for Berry. Edwards served as mentor, adviser, and vice president of Motown's main"
"it. He lived it."" Born as Robert Norman Gould in Chicago, Ron Miller was the only son of Sue and Harry Gould; Harry died when Miller and his sisters were still very young, and, after his mother remarried Joe Miller, Ron Miller adopted his stepfather's surname . Ron Miller served in the U.S. Marines and then sold washing machines before he was discovered by Motown founder Berry Gordy while playing in a bar. After his discovery by Gordy and Motown executive Mickey Stevenson in Chicago in the early 1960's, Miller was invited to write songs for Gordy's new company, Motown."
"had produced more than 100 top ten and number-one singles on various ""Billboard"" charts and had become the most successful black business company ever. By founding Motown Records, Gordy became the first African-American owner of a major recording label. He retired from being president of Motown Records in 1973 and from Motown Industries in 1988; he sold Motown's interest for $61 million to MCA Records and Boston Ventures. Gordy was inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame for his musical achievements the same year he sold Motown. Robert Louis Gordy (July 15, 1931 – ) is best known"
"Hall Center for the Performing Arts and the Gem Theatre and Century Club. In 1959, Berry Gordy founded Motown Records, one of the first black-owned record labels. Over the next decade, a number of top artists, including The Supremes, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye, signed with the label. The Second Baptist Church once served as ""station"" for the Underground Railroad. A monument to the Underground Railroad was erected in 2001 at Hart Plaza downtown. The Shrine of the Black Madonna of the Pan-African Orthodox Christian Church was founded in 1953 by the Rev. Albert B. Cleage. One of"
"has worked as a producer with G. C. Cameron, Smokey Robinson, Mandré and High Inergy. Gordy was previously married to producer and recording artist, Johnny Bristol. Presently, Gordy serves on the board of the Rhythm and Blues Foundation. Iris Gordy Iris Gordy (born February 16, 1943) is an American songwriter, producer, and music executive. She is a former vice president at Motown, where she helped launch the careers of DeBarge, Teena Marie, and Rick James. Gordy is the daughter of Mildred (née Hart) and Fuller Gordy, the brother of Motown founder Berry Gordy. In 1970, ""The Bells,"" a song she"
"Iris Gordy Iris Gordy (born February 16, 1943) is an American songwriter, producer, and music executive. She is a former vice president at Motown, where she helped launch the careers of DeBarge, Teena Marie, and Rick James. Gordy is the daughter of Mildred (née Hart) and Fuller Gordy, the brother of Motown founder Berry Gordy. In 1970, ""The Bells,"" a song she co-wrote with Marvin Gaye, Anna Gordy Gaye, and Elgie Stover, became a huge hit for The Originals. It has been subsequently recorded by a variety of artists including Laura Nyro, Color Me Badd, Sam Harris, Aaron Neville, and"
"offices from 1961 until 1972, when Berry moved the entire operation to Los Angeles. In 1985, she founded the Motown Historical Museum at the site of the former Hitsville U.S.A. studios, where many of Motown's successful recording artists recorded. Esther died in 2011 at the age of 91. Though she is often remembered more for her volatile marriage to Motown legend Marvin Gaye, Anna Ruby Gordy (January 28, 1922 – January 31, 2014), the third and last child born in Georgia prior to the family's move to Detroit, was one of Motown's earliest songwriters, penning several hits mainly for her"
"Motown CEO and founder Berry Gordy, who was impressed by the group and agreed to sign them that year. For a year the group worked alongside members of Switch, helping to add background vocals, instrumentation, arranging, and musical and lyrical composition to the band's works, most prominently in ""I Call Your Name"", ""My Friend in the Sky"", and ""Love Over and Over Again"". By 1981, Bobby and Tommy had left Switch and returned the favor to their siblings working with them on their debut album, which was released that year with Bobby, Bunny, and El as main producers. The only"
"together for Motown and founded a teen idol band called Apollo for the Motown Records label. Teena Marie was originally in the group as the female lead, but dropped out before the band released their first single for Motown entitled ""Astro Disco"". Gordy's career began in 1973 working in the Motown Records mailroom. The early years of his career were spent in various administrative and creative capacities. Then in 1979, he released an album on Motown as a member of the group, Apollo. By the 1980s, he was known professionally as Kerry Ashby to separate himself at Motown from his"
"or were allowed to attend the same show as long as each race stayed on either side of a police-guarded rope that divided the performance hall. Motown artists are credited with being among those who broke down these barriers so later audiences would no longer be separated by color. It was from a live Motortown Revue performance that Little Stevie Wonder got his first big hit, the 1963 #1 hit ""Fingertips (Pt. 2)"". Motown CEO Berry Gordy, Jr. noted in his biography, ""To Be Loved"", that the Revue was used to showcase Stevie Wonder in the days before he had"
"Denise Gordy Denise Georgette Gordy (born November 11, 1949) is an American former film and television actress. Born Denise Georgette Gordy in Detroit, Michigan, Gordy is the daughter of George and Rosemary Gordy and sister of Patrice and George Gordy, Jr., among others. Motown founder Berry Gordy is her uncle, while her aunt is Anna Gordy Gaye. Gordy has appeared in numerous television and theatrical features, beginning in 1972 with ""Lady Sings the Blues"" as a dancer in the nightclub chorus. In 1974, Gordy appeared in ""Black Fist"" and ending most recently with ""Toy Soldiers"" in 1991. Gordy also has"
"in Los Angeles used ""Pops, We Love You"" as the theme song of their promotional campaign for Father's Day. Pops, We Love You (A Tribute to Father) ""Pops, We Love You (A Tribute to Father)"" is a 1978 single recorded and released by Motown stars Diana Ross, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder, as a tribute to the late Berry ""Pops"" Gordy, Sr., father of Motown founder Berry Gordy, who had died that year after a long battle with cancer. For the duration of Motown Records' tenure in its native Detroit, Berry Gordy's father, Berry Gordy, Sr., otherwise known"
"Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, and was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ""motor"" and ""town"", has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered. Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music as an African American-owned label that achieved significant crossover success. In the 1960s, Motown and its subsidiary labels (including Tamla Motown, the brand used outside the US) were the"
"Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was originally founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, and was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ""motor"" and ""town"", has become a nickname for Detroit, where the label was originally headquartered. Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music as an African American-owned label that achieved significant crossover success. In the 1960s, Motown and its subsidiary labels (including Tamla Motown, the brand used outside the US) were the"
"of Motown and the audiences would be segregated. Then they started to get the Motown music and we would go back and the audiences were integrated and the kids were dancing together and holding hands. In 1967 Berry Gordy purchased what is now known as ""Motown Mansion"" in Detroit's Boston-Edison Historic District as his home, leaving his previous home to his sister Anna and then husband Marvin Gaye (where photos for the cover of his album ""What's Going On"" were taken). In 1968, Gordy purchased the Donovan building on the corner of Woodward Avenue and Interstate 75, and moved Motown's"
"Powers performed and recorded under his birth name but, following a studio session for Fortune Records in Detroit, co-owner Devora Brown – seeing Pavlik eating a PowerHouse candy bar – gave him the stage name of Johnny Powers. Powers released a pair of singles on the Fox Records label (not to be confused with today’s 20th Century Fox Records), including “Long Blond Hair”. Fox went out of business soon thereafter and in 1959 Powers signed with Sun Records, which released one single under his name. In 1960, Powers met with Berry Gordy and signed on with Motown Records, becoming the"
"married his fellow Miracles member Claudette Rogers in 1959. The couple had two children, son Berry Robinson (b. 1968), named after Motown's first label founder Berry Gordy, and daughter Tamla Robinson (b. 1969), named after the original ""Tamla"" label set up by Gordy that would eventually become Motown. Robinson has another son, Trey (b. 1984), with another woman, during his marriage to Claudette. After Robinson admitted this, he filed for legal separation and, later, divorce, which was granted in 1986. The Robinsons had separated once before, in 1974, and Robinson conducted an extramarital affair that became the concept of the"
"became known as simply P-Funk which is short for Parliament-Funkadelic. In 1967, Berry Gordy purchased what is now known as ""Motown Mansion"" in Detroit's Boston-Edison Historic District. Motown Records relocated to the West coast 1972, yet Detroit remained an important center of R&B with acts such as Freda Payne, The Floaters, Enchantment, Ray Parker Jr.; both solo and with his group Raydio, One Way, Oliver Cheatham, Cherrelle, The Jones Girls, Anita Baker, and BeBe & CeCe Winans. In 1969 The Flaming Ember had several hits for Hot Wax Records, a Detroit-based record label created in 1968 by the Holland/Dozier/Holland song"
"established for him and formed Tamla Records in January of that year. The label didn't become national until later that year after the success of Barrett Strong's ""Money (That's What I Want)"", and the label changed its name to Motown Records in December. Its first national release was The Miracles' ""Way Over There"". After 1964, Motown became one of the most successful recording labels in the business and ""The Motown Sound"", partially cultivated by Gordy, began to dominate popular music and pop culture. Gordy soon developed Motown Industries in 1968, which developed television specials and variety shows. By 1973, Motown"
"Berry Gordy and became a songwriter and executive at Motown. He was the nephew of Charlie Fuqua of the Ink Spots and the uncle of the filmmaker Antoine Fuqua. Fuqua was born in Louisville, Kentucky. He was the nephew of Charlie Fuqua of the Ink Spots. In 1951, with Bobby Lester, Alexander Graves and Prentiss Barnes, he formed a vocal group, the Crazy Sounds, in Louisville, later moving with other members of the group to Cleveland, Ohio. There they were taken under the wing of disc jockey Alan Freed, who renamed them the Moonglows, after his own nickname, Moondog"". The"
"(Edwin Starr, before that singer joined Motown itself), ""(I Just Wanna) Testify"" by the Parliaments, ""Band Of Gold"" (Freda Payne), ""Give Me Just A Little More Time"" (Chairmen of the Board), and blues giant John Lee Hooker's ""Boom Boom"". After he found out about the Edwin Starr session, Gordy fined members of the Funk Brothers band for moonlighting for another label; Eddie Wingate, owner of the Ric-Tic and Golden World labels, which released Starr's ""Agent Double-O Soul"", subsequently attended that year's Motown staff Christmas party and personally gave each of the fined session players double the amount of the fine"
"the Jackson 5 decided to leave the label and sign with Epic Records in 1975. However, Jermaine decided to stay with Motown Records, citing loyalty to the company as the reason. Others argue that Jermaine's marriage to Motown founder Berry Gordy's daughter Hazel, whom he married in 1973, was the reason. Jermaine split from the Jackson Five to start a solo career at Motown, and was replaced by his brother Randy Jackson. Unbeknownst to the group, Gordy had trademarked the name The Jackson Five and did not allow the group to continue using the name when they left the label."
"is, and at the end—if we were lucky — we were allowed to play a mellow song like Killing Me Softly or Ain't No Sunshine. But never rock."" In May 1976, Natasha Shneider, her husband Kapustin, and her brother Vladimir defected to the West, arriving in New York City without finances or connections. They took day jobs and played evening gigs around the city. In 1978 they arrived in Hollywood where they met Guy Costa, the head of Motown's Studio Operations, who introduced them to Berry Gordy, founder of Motown records. As a consequence of the meeting with Gordy they"
"in cash, on the spot. Gordy eventually bought out Wingate's label and his entire artist roster. Motown historians have noted that the Funk Brothers—some of whom had begun their careers as jazzmen and missed that kind of informality—itched to be able to record on their own, but Gordy limited them formally to cutting sides under the name Earl Van Dyke and the Soul Brothers—and mostly limited them to recording new versions (with the familiar arrangements, however) of the Motown repertoire, with Van Dyke, the featured musician, playing electric organ. Some of the Funk Brothers' recordings in that vein—""Soul Stomp,"" ""Six"
"her graduation, Teairra Marí has enjoyed a successful career, including her hit single ""Make Her Feel Good"" in 2005. One of the highlights of Detroit's musical history was the success of Motown Records during the 1960s and early 1970s. The label was founded in the late 1950s was founded by auto plant worker Berry Gordy, and was originally known as Tamla Records. As Motown, it became home to some of the most popular recording acts in the world, including Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, Stevie Wonder, Diana Ross & The Supremes, Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, The Four Tops, Martha Reeves"
"television and film production as well as music production. In 1959, Gordy formed his first label, Tamla Records, and purchased the property that would become Motown's Hitsville U.S.A. studio. The photography studio located in the back of the property was modified into a small recording studio, and the Gordys moved into the second-floor living quarters. Within seven years, Motown would occupy seven additional neighboring houses: By the end of 1966, Motown had hired over 450 employees and had a gross income of $20 million. In 1967 Berry Gordy purchased what is now known as the Motown mansion, in Detroit's Boston-Edison"