Stevie Wonder

Born in Saginaw, Michigan and raised in Detroit, Stevie Wonder, born Stevland Hardaway Morris, made his mark early in the history of American soul after signing with Motown in the early 1960s under the name Little Stevie Wonder. A singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, he develops a musical language that blends soul, R&B, pop, funk and gospel, with a strong sense of harmonies, keyboards and rhythm. After early breakthroughs marked by the 1963 success of Fingertips, Stevie Wonder gradually broadens his artistic autonomy and reshapes his writing at the turn of the 1970s. This period includes several landmark albums, including Music of My Mind and Talking Book in 1972, Innervisions in 1973, Fulfillingness’ First Finale in 1974 and Songs in the Key of Life in 1976. His approach becomes more personal, also more political, while preserving a strong melodic dimension. In the 1980s, Stevie Wonder remained very active with Hotter than July in 1980, the soundtrack of The Woman in Red in 1984 and In Square Circle in 1985, while multiplying collaborations with Paul McCartney, Michael Jackson, Dionne Warwick or Elton John. Still active on stage and in the studio, Stevie Wonder also released A Time to Love in 2005 and newer tracks more recently, extending a journey that links the Motown tradition to a modern, fluid soul open to several registers.