Berry Gordy, Jr.

Berry Gordy
Gordy in December 2010
Background information
Born	(1929-11-28) November 28, 1929 (age 87) Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Genres	R&B, soul, pop, rock and roll, doo-wop
Occupation(s)	Record executive, songwriter, record producer, film producer, television producer
Years active	1957–present
Labels	Motown
Associated acts	The Jackson 5, the Corporation, Diana Ross & the Supremes, Smokey Robinson, the Temptations, Stevie Wonder, the Four Tops, the Miracles, Marvin Gaye, Jackie Wilson, Martha and the Vandellas, Rockwell

Berry Gordy Jr. (born November 28, 1929) is an American record producer and songwriter. 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 Jr. was born 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 the son of a white plantation owner in Georgia and his female slave. Berry Gordy, Sr. was lured to Detroit by the job opportunities for black people offered by the booming automotive businesses. 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 (no relation to the singer Al Green), owner of the Flame Show Bar Talent Club, where he met the singer Jackie Wilson.

In 1957 Wilson recorded "Reet Petite", a song Gordy had co-written with his sister Gwen and writer-producer Billy Davis. 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. Wilson recorded six more songs co-written by Gordy over the next two years, including "Lonely Teardrops", which topped the R&B charts and got to number 7 in the pop chart. Berry and Gwen Gordy also wrote "All I Could Do Was Cry" for Etta James at Chess Records.

Gordy reinvested the profits from his songwriting success into producing. In 1957, he discovered the Miracles (originally known as the Matadors) and began building a portfolio of successful artists. In 1959, with the encouragement of Miracles leader Smokey Robinson, Gordy borrowed $800 from his family to create an R&B record company. Originally, Gordy wanted to name the new label Tammy Records, after the song recorded by Debbie Reynolds. However, that name was taken, and he chose the name Tamla Records. The company began operating on January 21, 1959. "Come to Me" by Marv Johnson was issued as Tamla 101. United Artists Records picked up "Come to Me" for national distribution, as well as Johnson's more successful follow-up records such as "You Got What It Takes", co-produced and co-written by Gordy. His 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 and is now one of the rarest issues from the Motown stable. Berry's third release was "Bad Girl" by the Miracles, the first release on the Motown record label. "Bad Girl" was a solid hit in 1959 after Chess Records picked it up. Barrett Strong's "Money (That's What I Want)" initially appeared on Tamla and then charted on Gordy's sister's label, Anna Records, in February 1960.