Marvin Gaye (born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr.; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo artist with a string of hits, earning him the nicknames "Prince of Motown" and "Prince of Soul".
He was one of the main singers that created the Motown sound of the 1960s, first as an session performer and later as a solo artist. Gaye's Motown hits include "Ain't That Peculiar", "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)", and "I Heard It Through the Grapevine". During the 1970s, he recorded the albums What's Going On and Let's Get It On and became one of the first artists in Motown to break away from the reins of a production company. In 1982 he released the hit "Sexual Healing" which won him his first two Grammy Awards on the album Midnight Love.
Tragically, on April 1, 1984, the day before his 45th birthday, Gaye was fatally shot by his father, Marvin Gay Sr., at their house in the West Adams district of Los Angeles. Many institutions have bestowed Gaye with awards and other honors including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and inductions into the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
As an artist who employed urban soul music to express social and personal concerns, as well as a singer of exquisite sensitivity and romantic grace, Gaye left a legacy that has widened since his demise, and his music has become a permanent fixture in American pop.
Here is Marvin singing one of his best known songs, “What’s Goin’ On?”, a message that really needs to be heard I’m the world today.
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