Berry Gordy by Christian Petty

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Berry Gordy

Published on Nov 19, 2015

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by Christian Petty-King

Berry Gordy Jr. was born November 28th, 1929 in Detroit, Michigan
Gordy was the seventh of eight children
Berry dropped out of high school in the eleventh grade to become a professional boxer in hopes of becoming rich quick, a career he followed until 1950 when he was drafted by the United States Army for the Korean War.
After his return from Korea in 1953, he married Thelma Coleman. He developed his interest in music by writing songs and opening the 3-D Record Mart, a record store featuring jazz music. The store was unsuccessful and Gordy sought work at the Lincoln-Mercury plant, but his family connections put him in touch with Al Green (not the singer), owner of the Flame Show Bar talent club, where he met singer Jackie Wilson.
The store was unsuccessful and Gordy sought work at the Lincoln-Mercury plant, but his family connections put him in touch with Al Green (not the singer), owner of the Flame Show Bar talent club, where he met singer Jackie Wilson.

Gordy reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1957, he discovered the Miracles and began building a portfolio of successful artists. In 1959, at Miracles leader Smokey Robinson's encouragement, Gordy borrowed $800 from his family to create R&B label Tamla Records. On January 21, 1959, "Come To Me" by Marv Johnson was issued as Tamla 101.
Gordy's gift for identifying and bringing together musical talent, along with the careful management of his artists' public image, made Motown initially a major national and then international success.
Over the next decade, he signed such artists as the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, the Temptations, Jimmy Ruffin, the Contours, the Four Tops, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Commodores, the Velvelettes, Martha and the Vandellas, Stevie Wonder and the Jackson 5.
The original name was Tamla Records

Early Tamla/Motown artists included Mable John, Eddie Holland and Mary Wells. "Shop Around", the Miracles' first number 1 R&B hit, peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1960. It was Tamla's first million-selling record.
From 1961 to 1971, Motown had 110 top 10 hits. Top artists on the Motown label during that period included Diana Ross & the Supremes, the Four Tops, and the Jackson 5, while Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, the Marvelettes, and the Miracles had hits on the Tamla label.
Motown played an important role in the racial integration of popular music as an African American-owned record label which achieved significant crossover success.

In 1972, Gordy relocated to Los Angeles where he produced the commercially successful Billie Holiday biography Lady Sings the Blues, starring Diana Ross and Richard Pryor, and introducing Billy Dee Williams.
Although Motown continued to produce major hits throughout the 1970s and 1980s by artists including the Jacksons, Rick James, Lionel Richie and long-term signings, Stevie Wonder and Smokey Robinson, the record company was no longer the major force it had been previously. Gordy sold his interests in Motown Records to MCA and Boston Ventures on June 28, 1988 for $61 million. He later sold most of his interests in Jobete publishing to EMI Publishing.

Gordy was married three times and has three children.
He has three children with Thelma Coleman (Hazel Joy,Berry IV, and Terry James
He got married to Raynoma Mayberry Liles and has one child with her (Kerry Ashby)
He got married to Jeana Jackson and had a daughter (Sherry)
Gordy had a child with Diana Ross (Rhonda Suzanne)
His youngest child name is Stefan Kendal but you probably know him as Redfoo from LMFAO

Gordy was portrayed by Billy Dee Williams in the 1992 miniseries The Jacksons: An American Dream. He was also portrayed by Obba Babatunde in the 1998 miniseries The Temptations.
The character Gordy Berry in The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air is a reference to Berry Gordy