Songwriter and music executive Berry Gordy was born in Detroit, Michigan on November 28, 1929. Being the second youngest of eight children, Gordy could have easily followed in the footsteps of his older brothers and joined the family business, but he found himself much more interested in the world of arts and entertainment. He attended Northeastern High School, but dropped out his junior year to pursue a featherweight boxing career. Dividing his time between writing songs on the piano and training at a local Detroit gym under champion trainer Eddie Futch, Gordy fostered both talents. By the time he was 20, Gordy had triumphed in 13 of 19 professional fights. At one time Gordy appeared on the same bill as Joe Louis in 1948.
Gordy served in the U.S. Army’s 58th Field Artillery Battalion, 3rd Infantry Division from 1951 until 1953, during the Korean War. After discharge from military service, Gordy got married at 19 and had his first child. Inspired by his love of music, Gordy then opened a record shop, called the 3-D Record Mart, his first real foray into the music business, which mostly sold jazz music. The business lasted just two years but not before Gordy ascertained that most of his clientele seemed more interested in buying rhythm-and-blues music than the jazz records that were his passion. After the closing of 3-D, Gordy worked at Ford Motor’s Lincoln Mercury plant. He still had songwriting in his mind while working on the production line. At the age of 27, Gordy decided to hand in his notice and dedicate himself to music.
His family connections put him in touch with the owner of the Flame Show Bar talent club, where he met singer Jackie Wilson. Berry was now dedicated to pursue a professional songwriting career. Soon he began to write music, penning hit songs for Jackie Wilson and Etta James in 1957. He ended up co-writing, with his sister Gwen and writer-producer Billy Davis, the Wilson hit "Reet Petite". It became a modest hit, but had more success internationally, especially in the UK, where it reached the Top 10 and even later topped the chart on re-issue in 1986. Gordy also wrote Wilson's "Lonely Teardrops” and "To Be Loved". “Lonely Teardrops,” became a number one rhythm-and-blues hit for Wilson and reached number seven on the Billboard pop charts.
Despite this success, Berry was not content to write songs. In 1959 at the suggestion of friend, William "Smokey" Robinson, Gordy decided to open his own record company and market records. Using $800 his family had loaned him, Gordy formed Tamla Records on January 12, 1959. Originally, Gordy wanted to name the new label Tammy Records, after the song recorded by Debbie Reynolds. However, that name was taken, so he settled for the name Tamla Records. When Gordy set up shop in a house on Detroit's West Grand Boulevard, he chose the aspirational name Hitsville for his headquarters. Gordy's next release was the only 45 ever issued on his Rayber label, featuring Wade Jones with an unnamed female backup group. The record did not sell well.
That same year, his nascent label turned out its first hit, Barrett Strong’s “Money (That’s What I Want),” which ultimately reached #23 on the Billboard pop charts, with Gordy serving as co-writer as well. In 1960, Motown Record Corporation was founded, under which many popular artists were signed. Gordy began producing music for the group the Miracles, featuring Smokey Robinson. It was The Miracles who gave Tamla its first million-selling hit single, with the 1960 Grammy Hall of Fame smash, "Shop Around", which climbed to No. 1 on the R&B charts and No. 2 pop. And its follow up hits, "You've Really Got a Hold on Me". Songs "Mickey's Monkey", "What's So Good About Goodbye", and "I'll Try Something New", made The Miracles the label's first stars.
The Tamla and Motown labels were then merged into a new company, Motown Record Corporation, incorporated on April 14, 1960. In 1960, Gordy signed an unknown singer, Mary Wells, who became the fledgling label's second star, with Smokey Robinson penning her hits "You Beat Me to the Punch", "Two Lovers", and "My Guy". The next year, the Marvelettes were the first Motown act to hit No. 1 on the pop charts with "Please Mr. Postman." His early creative recruits like Mickey Stevenson, Eddie and Brian Holland, Lamont Dozier and Norman Whitfield further develop their writing and producing skills. As the company took shape, Gordy brought on talent such as the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, and Marvin Gaye. Gordy also signed three teenage girls — Mary Wilson, Florence Ballard and Diana Ross — who would become the Supremes.
Equally important were the songwriters Gordy brought to Motown, as well as the Funk Brothers house band anchored by legendary bassist James Jamerson. All of this spoke to Gordy’s discriminating attention to detail, efficiency, and quality control: By keeping all aspects of production in-house, he could guarantee listeners a consistent and instantly recognizable brand in the “Motown sound.” By and large, the same musicians played on almost every single; the same teams of songwriters wrote nearly every hit. It was a business strategy that sprang from Gordy’s exacting and controlling nature, although its success was largely attributable to the extraordinary talent at all levels of the Motown operation.
Gordy's gift for identifying and bringing together musical talent, along with the careful management of his artists' public image, made Motown a major national and then international success. With regular quality control meetings, Gordy made sure that Motown's releases were ready to impress listeners. He also arranged for his performers to learn how to best present themselves both on and off the stage. By the mid-1960s, Gordy was presiding over the most successful African American-owned business in America. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s also affected Gordy's work. Not only did he release Martin Luther King Jr.'s Great March to Freedom and Great March to Washington speeches, Gordy believed that White audiences would now accept Black stars.
Motown Records made more than 110 number-one hit songs and countless top-ten records. In 1965, Gordy's company had $15 million in sales, more than triple what it had been making in 1963. It was during the 1960s that Motown became the largest Black-owned company in America. In June of 1966, Gordy opened a West Coast office of Motown Records with the intention of expanding into film production. With its popular dominance, the label was able to integrate its all-white sales department, as it now had the clout to demand that its sales force be accepted across the country. By 1972, Gordy moved all of Motown operations from Detroit to Los Angeles, effectively ending the label’s Detroit era, now widely considered its “golden age.”
Expanding his enterprise to films, Gordy released "Lady Sings the Blues" (1972), "Mahogany" (1975) and "The Wiz" (1978), all featuring Diana Ross. His interest in movies meant Gordy had less time to pay attention to the music side of Motown. Some things were going well in the 1970s: Marvin Gaye's powerful protest album "What's Going On", was a notable release in 1971 and Stevie Wonder renewed his contract in 1976. By the mid-1980s the company boasted annual revenues in excess of $100 million, and Motown acts had recorded more than 50 number one hits on the Billboard pop singles chart. Facing increasing competition from large media conglomerates, however, Gordy sold Motown to MCA in 1988 for $61 million.
Gordy held onto the film and television production arm of the company, as well as his publishing company, Jobete. Throughout his career, Gordy has received numerous awards, including the Martin Luther King, Jr. Leadership Award in 1969, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2021, the Grammy Trustee Award in 1991, a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1996, and the American Legend Award in 1998. In 1994, Warner Books released Gordy's autobiography, "To Be Loved". Though Gordy couldn't read music or play an instrument, he had the musical chops to create the sound of Motown and to promote an incredible roster of talent. Gordy was never focused on the earnings, saying, “Money had never been the main thing for me. It’s the legacy that was important.” His legacy and the legacy of his work will always be seen as impactful.