It’s impossible to talk about the notoriety of “Black Music” without mentioning Berry Gordy. This charming American businessman with a murderous smile is the founder of Motown Record Corporation. The company he founded in 1959 has become America’s most successful music company owned by a black man.
He was the sensation behind the rise of many R&B performers of the 1960s and 1970s. These artists include Diana Ross and the Supremes, the Marvelettes, Marvin Gaye, Michael Jackson and the Jackson Five, Smokey Robinson and the Miracles, Stevie Wonder and the Temptations.
Berry Gordy’s Biography, Age
Baie Gordy III was born on November 28, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan. His father, Berry Gordy II, was a middle-class American who moved from Oconee, Georgia to Detroit in 1922. He is said to share a line with President Jimmy Carter.
Berry was unable to complete her education at Northeastern High School in Detroit. It wasn’t because he couldn’t afford it, but because he was obsessed with boxing and so he left school to pursue a career in featherweight boxing. This was followed by a spell in the US Army.
Upon Berry’s return to Detroit, he became interested in music and business as well, which led him to open his first store, 3-D Record Mart. In the store, he sold jazz and 3-D glasses while writing songs at the time.
The stores business failed, forcing Berry to look for a job at the Lincoln-Mercury plant. However, his parents intervened and linked him to talent club owner Flame Show Bar, Al Green. There, he met Jackie Wilson, better known as Mr. Excitement.
Alongside Gwen (Berry’s sister) and Billy Davis (a writer and producer), Berry wrote the song, Reet Petite for Jackie Wilson. Jackie recorded the song in 1957 and got a lot of buzz internationally. In the UK, the song topped the charts. He co-wrote a few other songs for Jackie, including Chart-Topping Lonely Drops
Relationships – spouses
Like most black celebrities, Berry Gordy has been involved in multiple relationships – marital and non-marital. hi First wife was Thelma Coleman. They married in 1953, upon his return from serving his country through the military. The marriage only lasted six years before their official divorce in 1959.
A year after his failed marriage to Thelma, he married Raynoma Mayberry Liles. However, before marrying Raynoma, he had a brief affair with Jeana Jackson and a mistress, Margaret Norton. Berry and Raynoma were married in the spring of 1960, but divorced four years later, becoming her second divorce. Her marriage to Raynoma suffered greatly from her infidelity issues. So in 1964 they decided to quit.
In 1965, he was involved in a romantic affair with Diana Ross, who was a Motown artist at the time. Although they never got married, they were in the relationship for quite a while. Their intimate relationship lasted 5 years (between 1965 and 1970).
After the relationship with Diana Ross, it took her a long time to bond with anyone. Finally, in 1982, he was reunited with Grace Eaton. In what seemed like a perfect match, they dated for eight years. That hasn’t stopped him from having an affair with Nancy Leiviska yet. However, in 1990, the two decided to legalize their relationship after spending a lot of time together. The marriage did not live up to her expectations as it became Berry’s least durable marriage. After three years of marriage, Berry filed for divorce. The divorce officially happened in 1993.
children
Berry Gordy just has a knack for procreation. Of the six women with whom he had intimate relationships, five of them bore him children. In all, he had eight children by five wives.
His first wife, Thelma, gave birth to three children. They are Hazel (born in 1954 and married to Jermaine Jackson), Berry IV (born in 1955 and father of Skyler Austen Gordy) and Terry (born in 1956).
His second wife, Raynoma, gave birth to a child, Kerry (b. 1959). Jeana had a daughter for him, Sherry (b. 1960). Margaret had a son, Kennedy William, born in 1964 and named Rockwell.
Berry Gordy also had a daughter with Diana Ross, Rhonda Suzanne in 1971. However, her legal father is Robert Ellis Silberstein under California family law. Her eight-year-old son is Stephan Kendal, born to her by Nancy. He was born in 1975 and goes by the stage name Redfoo.
What is his net worth?
Over the years, few names can match Berry Gordy’s reputation and success in the music business. His net worth is estimated to be $345 million, placing him among the wealthiest producers of black music.
Height and width
Berry Gordy stands at an almost average height of 1.75m (5ft 9in). For someone his age, the music mogul also maintains an impressive weight of 78 kg (171.9 lbs).
Other Facts About Berry Gordy
- He has 12 Gold Glove titles. As a boxer, he appeared in 15 Golden Glove matches and won 12.
- He was the first living person to be inducted into the pioneering Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2013.