Editing Stevie Wonder

{{Short description|American-Ghanaian musician (born 1950)}}
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{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Stevie Wonder
| image              = SWonderBSTHyde060719-72 (cropped).jpg
| caption            = Wonder in 2019
| birth_name         = Stevland Hardaway Judkins<!-- spelling it "Steveland" is not correct, multiple other sources spell it without the second "e"-->
| alias              = {{flatlist|
* Stevland Hardaway Morris
* Little Stevie Wonder
}}
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|mf=yes|1950|5|13}}
| birth_place        = [[Saginaw, Michigan]], U.S.
| death_date         = 
| death_place        = 
| citizenship        = {{Hlist|[[United States]]|[[Ghana]]}}
| occupation         = {{flatlist|
* Singer
* songwriter
* musician
* record producer
}}
| years_active       = 1961–present
| spouse             = {{plainlist|
* {{Marriage|[[Syreeta Wright]] |1970|1972|reason=divorced}}
* {{Marriage|Kai Millard|2001|2012|reason=divorced}}
* {{Marriage|Tomeeka Bracy|2017}}
}}
| children           = 9
| mother             = [[Lula Mae Hardaway]]
| signature          = Stevie Wonder Signature.svg
| module             = {{Infobox musical artist|embed=yes
| background          = solo_singer
| genre        = {{flatlist|
* [[Soul music|Soul]]
* [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]]<ref name="Snapes-2019">{{cite web|url= https://www.theguardian.com/music/2019/jul/08/stevie-wonder-kidney-transplant-british-summertime-festival-hyde-park-london|title=Stevie Wonder to undergo kidney transplant|work=[[The Guardian]]|location=London|last=Snapes|first=Laura|date=July 8, 2019|access-date=July 26, 2020}}</ref>
* [[Pop music|pop]]<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1995/03/13/realms-of-wonder/amp|title=The Enduring Otherworldliness of Stevie Wonder|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|last=Smith|first=Giles|date=March 5, 1995|access-date=July 26, 2020}}</ref>
* [[funk]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.timeout.com/london/music/the-best-stevie-wonder-songs|title=The best Stevie Wonder songs|magazine=[[Time Out (magazine)|Time Out]]|last=Keens|first=Oliver|date=June 29, 2016|access-date=July 26, 2020}}</ref>
* [[Gospel music|gospel]]<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dailynewsegypt.com/2020/05/18/soul-legend-stevie-wonder-remembered/|title=Soul legend Stevie Wonder remembered|work=[[Daily News Egypt]]|date=May 18, 2020|access-date=July 27, 2020}}</ref>
* [[progressive soul]]<ref>{{cite book|editor1-last=Hoard|editor1-first=Christian|editor2-last=Brackett|editor2-first=Nathan|year=2004|title=[[The New Rolling Stone Album Guide]]|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|isbn=9780743201698|page=524}}</ref>
}}
| instruments  = {{flatlist|
* Vocals
* keyboards
* harmonica
* drums
}}
| discography  = [[Stevie Wonder discography]]
| label        = {{flatlist|
* [[Tamla]]
* [[Motown]]
* [[Republic Records|So What the Fuss Records]]}}
}}
| website            = {{URL|steviewonder.net}}
}}

'''Stevland Hardaway Morris''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|s|t|iː|v|ˌ|l|ə|n|d}}; {{né}} '''Judkins'''; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as '''Stevie Wonder''', is an American-Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer.<!--NOTE: The lead sentence should stick to what he is primarily known for. The infobox is there to include additional occupations.--> He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century. Wonder is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include [[rhythm and blues|R&B]], [[Pop music|pop]], [[Soul music|soul]], [[Gospel music|gospel]], [[funk]], and [[jazz]]. A virtual [[one-man band]], Wonder's use of [[synthesizer]]s and other [[electronic musical instrument]]s during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of [[contemporary R&B]]. He also helped drive such genres into the [[album era]], crafting his [[LP record|LPs]] as cohesive and consistent, in addition to socially conscious statements with complex compositions. [[Visual impairment|Blind]] since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a [[child prodigy]] who signed with [[Motown]]'s [[Tamla]] label at the age of 11, where he was given the professional name '''Little Stevie Wonder'''.

Wonder's single "[[Fingertips]]" was a No. 1 hit on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] in 1963, when he was 13, making him the [[List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones#Age records|youngest solo artist ever]] to top the chart. Wonder's critical success was at its peak in the 1970s. His "classic period" began in 1972 with the releases of ''[[Music of My Mind]]'' and ''[[Talking Book]]'', the latter featuring "[[Superstition (song)|Superstition]]", which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the [[Clavinet|Hohner Clavinet]] keyboard. His works ''[[Innervisions]]'' (1973), ''[[Fulfillingness' First Finale]]'' (1974) and ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]'' (1976) all won the [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year]], making him the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. Wonder began his "commercial period" in the 1980s; he achieved his biggest hits and highest level of fame, had increased album sales, charity participation, high-profile collaborations (including with [[Paul McCartney]] and [[Michael Jackson]]), political impact, and television appearances. Wonder has continued to remain active in music and political causes.

Wonder is one of the [[List of best-selling music artists|best-selling music artists of all time]], with sales of over 100 million records worldwide. He has won 25 [[Grammy Awards]] (the most by a male solo artist) and one [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] ([[Academy Award for Best Song|Best Original Song]], for the 1984 film ''[[The Woman in Red (1984 film)|The Woman in Red]]''). Wonder has been inducted into the [[Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame]], the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]] and the [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]]. He is also noted for his political activism, including his 1980 campaign to make [[Martin Luther King Jr.]]'s birthday a [[Martin Luther King Jr. Day|federal holiday]] in the United States. In 2009, Wonder was named a [[United Nations Messengers of Peace|United Nations Messenger of Peace]], and in 2014, he was honored with the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]].

== Early life ==
Wonder was born Stevland Hardaway Judkins in [[Saginaw, Michigan]], on May 13, 1950, the third of five children born to [[Lula Mae Hardaway]],<ref name="blindfaith">{{cite book |last1=Love |first1=Dennis |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2I_vHgAACAAJ |title=Blind Faith: The Miraculous Journey of Lula Hardaway, Stevie Wonder's Mother |last2=Brown |first2=Stacy |publisher=Simon & Schuster |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-4165-7785-0}}</ref> and the second of Hardaway's two children with Calvin Judkins.<ref name= "Ribowski">Ribowski, Mark (2010).  ''Signed, Sealed, and Delivered: The Soulful Journey of Stevie Wonder''.  Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.<br>Hardaway had her first child, Stevie's half-brother Milton, prior to her relationship with Judkins; following her split with Judkins, she rekindled her relationship with Milton's father, coincidentally named Paul Hardaway, who by now had another child of his own – Stevie's stepbrother Larry – and with whom she went on to have two more children, Stevie's half-sister Renee and half-brother Timmy</ref> Wonder was born six weeks premature, a condition that, along with the oxygen-rich atmosphere in the hospital incubator, resulted in [[retinopathy of prematurity]], a disease that aborts eye growth and often causes the [[retina]]s to detach, which left him blind.<ref name="incubator">{{cite news|title=Stevie Wonder: Blind faith|work=[[The Independent]] |url=http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/stevie-wonder-blind-faith-865838.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220525/http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/stevie-wonder-blind-faith-865838.html |archive-date=May 25, 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live |date= July 12, 2008|access-date=July 29, 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1011/30/lkl.01.html |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110708171546/http://www.cnnstudentnews.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1011/30/lkl.01.html |url-status=dead |archive-date= July 8, 2011 |title=Transcript of interview: Larry King and Stevie Wonder |date=November 30, 2010 |work=Larry King Live |publisher=[[CNN]] |access-date=January 4, 2011 }}</ref>

When Wonder was four, his mother divorced his father and moved with her three children to [[Detroit]]. Wonder attended Whitestone [[Baptist]] Church, where he sang in the choir and became a [[Solo (music)|soloist]] at age eight.<ref>{{cite book| url= https://archive.org/details/steviewonder00cons | url-access= registration |title= Stevie Wonder| first= Constanze |last= Elsner| date= December 29, 1977|publisher=Popular Library |via=Internet Archive|isbn= 9780445043244}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Smith |first1=Giles |title=The Enduring Otherworldliness of Stevie Wonder |url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1995/03/13/realms-of-wonder |magazine=The New Yorker |date=March 5, 1995}}</ref> His mother later rekindled her relationship with her first child's father (whose surname was also coincidentally Hardaway),<ref name= "Ribowski"/> changed her name back to Lula Hardaway, and had two more children.

Wonder began playing instruments at an early age, including piano, harmonica, and drums. He formed a singing partnership with a friend; calling themselves Stevie and John, they played on street corners and occasionally at parties and dances.<ref>{{cite book| url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YNae0zmGow4C&pg=PA312 |page=312|title=Icons of R&B and Soul| first= Bob |last= Gulla |publisher= Greenwood Publishing Group|year= 2008|isbn=9780313340468}}</ref> When Stevie was signed by [[Motown]] in 1961, his surname was legally changed to Morris, which (according to Lula Mae Hardaway's authorized biography) was an old family name. [[Berry Gordy]] was responsible for creating the stage name of "Little Stevie Wonder".<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.cnn.com/2013/06/07/us/stevie-wonder-fast-facts/index.html | title=Stevie Wonder Fast Facts | website=[[CNN]] | date=June 7, 2013 }}</ref>

Wonder attended Fitzgerald Elementary School in Detroit.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.aph.org/stevie-wonders-trail-to-braille/|title=Stevie Wonder's Trail to Braille|publisher=[[American Printing House for the Blind|American Printing House]]|date=April 25, 2019|access-date=February 20, 2022}}</ref> After his first album was released, ''[[The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie]]'' (1962), he enrolled in [[Michigan School for the Blind]] in [[Lansing, Michigan]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Stevie Wonder: 'I'm going to take a break'; will have kidney transplant this September |first=Susan |last=Whitall |date=July 7, 2019 |url=https://www.detroitnews.com/story/entertainment/2019/07/06/stevie-wonder-im-going-take-break-have-kidney-transplant-september/1666635001/ |website=Detroit News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Devereaux |first1=Brad |title=Saginaw native Stevie Wonder is 65 and here are 6 facts about him |url=https://www.mlive.com/news/saginaw/2015/05/stevie_wonder_born_in_saginaw.html |website=mlive.com |access-date=August 5, 2019 |date=May 13, 2015}}</ref>

== Career ==
=== 1960s: Singles as a youth ===
[[File:Stevie Wonder 1967 (1).jpg|thumb|Wonder rehearsing for a performance on Dutch television in 1967|alt=|273x273px]]

In 1961, at the age of 11, Wonder sang his own composition, "Lonely Boy", to [[Ronnie White]] of [[the Miracles]];<ref name="Werner-2004">{{cite book|first= Craig |last= Werner|title= Higher Ground|publisher= Crown Publishers|year= 2004}}</ref><ref name=Icon313/> White then took Wonder and his mother to an audition at [[Motown]], where CEO [[Berry Gordy]] signed Wonder to Motown's Tamla label.<ref name="blindfaith"/> Before signing, producer [[Clarence Paul]] gave him the name '''Little Stevie Wonder'''.<ref name="incubator"/><ref name="rsweek">{{cite web |first= Stacey |last= Anderson|magazine= Rolling Stone |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/week-in-rock-history-elvis-dies-at-graceland-95357|title=Week in Rock History: Elvis Dies at Graceland |date=August 15, 2011}}</ref> Because of Wonder's age, the label drew up a rolling five-year contract in which royalties would be held in trust until Wonder was 21. He and his mother would be paid a weekly stipend to cover their expenses: Wonder received $2.50 ({{Inflation|US|2.5|1961|r=2|fmt=eq}}) per week, and a private tutor was provided when Wonder was on tour.<ref name=Icon313>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YNae0zmGow4C&pg=PA313 |page=313|title=Icons of R&B and Soul|last=Gulla| publisher=Greenwood Publishing|year= 2008|isbn=9780313340468}}</ref>

Wonder was put in the care of producer and songwriter Clarence Paul, and for a year they worked together on two albums. ''[[Tribute to Uncle Ray]]'' was recorded first, when Wonder was still 11 years old. Mainly covers of [[Ray Charles]]'s songs, the album included a Wonder and Paul composition, "Sunset". ''[[The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie]]'' was recorded next, an instrumental album consisting mainly of Paul's compositions, two of which, "Wondering" and "Session Number 112", were co-written with Wonder.<ref name=Icon314>{{cite book|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=YNae0zmGow4C&pg=PA314 |page=314|title=Icons of R&B and Soul|last= Gulla|publisher=Greenwood Publishing|year= 2008|isbn=9780313340468}}</ref> Feeling Wonder was now ready, a song, "Mother Thank You", was recorded for release as a single, but then pulled and replaced by the Berry Gordy song "I Call It Pretty Music, But the Old People Call It the Blues" as his début single;<ref>{{cite book| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VXSaGI4-SZ8C&pg=PA26 |page=26|title=Stevie Wonder: Rhythms of Wonder|first= Sharon |last= Davis| publisher= Robson| year= 2006|isbn=9781861059659}}</ref> released summer 1962,<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8JRHnCMUVb8C&pg=PA194 |page=194|title=Motown: The Golden Years|first= Bill |last= Dahl|publisher=Krause Publications|date= February 28, 2011|isbn=9781440227837}}</ref> it almost broke into the ''Billboard'' 100, spending one week of August at 101.<ref>{{cite book|title=Sophomore slumps|page=176|first= Christopher |last=Golden|publisher=Carol Pub. Group|year= 1995}}</ref> Two follow-up singles, "Little Water Boy" and "Contract on Love",  both had no success, and the two albums, released in reverse order of recording—''The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie'' in September 1962 and ''Tribute to Uncle Ray'' in October 1962—also met with little success.<ref name=Icon314/><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V6Cu3SEKObkC&pg=PA27 |page=27|title=Stevie Wonder|first= Tenley |last= Williams|publisher=Infobase Publishing|date= January 1, 2002|isbn=9781438122632}}</ref>

{{quote box
| quoted = 1
| quote = Most of these songs hit the charts in a big way before Stevie turned twenty-one [in 1971]. Because he's grown up fast, the love lyrics are less teen-specific than a lot of early [[Smokey Robinson|Smokey]], say, but the music is pure [[puberty]]. Stevie's rockers are always one step ahead of themselves—their gawky groove is so disorienting it makes you pay attention, like a voice that's perpetually changing. The ballads conceive [[coming of age]] more conventionally, and less felicitously. But he sure covered [[Tony Bennett]] better than [[the Supremes]] or [[the Temptations|the Tempts]] could have, now didn't he?
| source = —Review of ''Stevie Wonder's Greatest Hits Vol. 2'' in ''[[Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies]]'' (1981)<ref>{{cite book|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|year=1981|title=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies|publisher=[[Ticknor & Fields]]|isbn=089919026X|chapter=Consumer Guide '70s: W|chapter-url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/get_chap.php?k=W&bk=70|access-date=March 9, 2019|via=robertchristgau.com|title-link=Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies}}</ref>
| width = 23%
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}}

At the end of 1962, when Wonder was 12 years old, he joined the [[Motortown Revue]], touring the "[[Chitlin' Circuit]]" of theatres across America that accepted black artists. At the [[Regal Theater, Chicago|Regal Theater]], Chicago, his 20-minute performance was recorded and released in May 1963 as the album ''[[Recorded Live: The 12 Year Old Genius]]''.<ref name=Icon314/> A single, "[[Fingertips]]", from the album was also released in May, and became a major hit.<ref name=Tenley>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V6Cu3SEKObkC&pg=PA28 |page=28|title=Stevie Wonder|last= Williams|publisher=Infobase Publishing|date= January 1, 2002|isbn=9781438122632}}</ref> The song, featuring a confident and enthusiastic Wonder returning for a spontaneous encore that catches out the replacement bass player, who is heard to call out "What key? What key?",<ref name=Tenley/><ref name=Gilliland>{{cite web |author-link=John Gilliland|first= John |last= Gilliland |work=[[Pop Chronicles]] Show 25 – The Soul Reformation: Phase two, the Motown story [Part 4] |title=Track 5-Stevie Wonder|publisher= UNT Digital Library |url=http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc19780/ |date=February 1969}}</ref> was a No. 1 hit on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] when Wonder was aged 13, making him the youngest artist ever to top the chart.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/5740767/lordes-royals-crowns-hot-100|title=Lorde's 'Royals' Crowns Hot 100|first= Gary |last= Trust|magazine=Billboard|date=October 2, 2013}}</ref> The single was simultaneously No. 1 on the R&B chart, the first time that had occurred.<ref name=Tenley30>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V6Cu3SEKObkC&pg=PA30 |page=30|title=Stevie Wonder |last=Williams|publisher=Infobase Publishing|date= January 1, 2002|isbn=9781438122632}}</ref> His next few recordings were not successful; his voice was changing as he got older, and some Motown executives were considering cancelling his recording contract.<ref name=Tenley30/><ref name=McFerrin>{{cite web|accessdate=May 6, 2025|url=https://johnmcferrinmusicreviews.org/wonder.htm|title=Stevie Wonder:I'm Just Saying, For A Blind Guy He Sure Really Likes To Watch NBA Games|first=John|last=McFerrin|work=John McFerrin's Reviews of Music|date=July 13, 2018}}</ref> During 1964, Wonder appeared in two films as himself, ''[[Muscle Beach Party]]'' and ''[[Bikini Beach]]'', but these were not successful either.<ref>{{cite book|title=Stevie Wonder: Musician|first= Jeremy K. |last=Brown|page=36|publisher=Infobase Publishing|year= 2010}}</ref> Motown producer/songwriter [[Sylvia Moy]] persuaded label owner Berry Gordy to give Wonder another chance.<ref name=Tenley30/>

Dropping the "Little" from his name, Moy and Wonder worked together to create the hit "[[Uptight (Everything's Alright)]]",<ref name=Tenley30/> and Wonder went on to have a number of other hits during the mid-1960s, including "With a Child's Heart", and "[[Blowin' in the Wind]]",<ref name=Gilliland/> a [[Bob Dylan]] song, co-sung by his mentor, producer Clarence Paul.<ref name=pc50>{{Pop Chronicles|50|2}}.</ref> He also began to work in the Motown songwriting department, composing songs both for himself and his label mates, including "[[The Tears of a Clown]]", a No. 1 hit for [[Smokey Robinson and the Miracles]] (it was first released in 1967, mostly unnoticed as the last track of their ''[[Make It Happen (Smokey Robinson & The Miracles album)|Make It Happen]]'' LP, but eventually became a major success when re-released as a single in 1970, which prompted Robinson to reconsider his intention of leaving the group).<ref name=Tenley36>{{cite book |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=V6Cu3SEKObkC&pg=PA36 |page=36|title=Stevie Wonder |last= Williams|publisher=Infobase Publishing|date= January 1, 2002|isbn=9781438122632}}</ref>
[[File:I Was Made to Love Her - Billboard ad 1967.jpg|thumb|''[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]'' advertisement, June 17, 1967]] 
In 1968, Wonder recorded an album of instrumental soul/jazz tracks, mostly harmonica solos, under the title ''[[Eivets Rednow]]'', which is "Stevie Wonder" spelled backward.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HISHiLVxVnIC&pg=PA13 |page=13|title=The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music|first= James E. |last= Perone|publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group|date= January 1, 2006|isbn=9780275987237}}</ref> The album failed to get much attention, and its only single, a cover of Burt Bacharach's and Hal David's "[[Alfie (Burt Bacharach song)|Alfie]]", only reached number 66 on the U.S. Pop charts and number 11 on the U.S. Adult Contemporary charts. Nonetheless, he managed to score several hits between 1967 and 1970 such as "[[I Was Made to Love Her (song)|I Was Made to Love Her]]",<ref name=pc50/> "[[For Once in My Life]]" and "[[Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours]]". A number of Wonder's early hits, including "[[My Cherie Amour (song)|My Cherie Amour]]", "I Was Made to Love Her", and "Uptight (Everything's Alright)", were co-written with [[Henry Cosby]]. The hit single "[[Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours]]" was his first-ever self-produced song.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2018/aug/02/readers-recommend-playlist-songs-inspired-by-india|title=Readers recommend playlist: songs inspired by India|last=Boyland|first=George|date=August 2, 2018|website=The Guardian|language=en|access-date=August 7, 2018}}</ref>

In 1969, Wonder participated in the [[Sanremo Music Festival]] with the song "Se tu ragazzo mio", in conjunction with [[Gabriella Ferri]]. Between 1967 and 1970, he recorded four 45 rpm singles<ref>{{Cite web|title=Discografia Nazionale della canzone italiana|url=http://discografia.dds.it/scheda_titolo.php?idt=4174|website=discografia.dds.it|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Discografia Nazionale della canzone italiana|url=http://discografia.dds.it/scheda_titolo.php?idt=3971|website=discografia.dds.it|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Stevie Wonder – Se Tu Ragazza Mia / Shoo Be Doo Be Doo Da Day|url=https://www.discogs.com/it/Stevie-Wonder-Se-Tu-Ragazza-Mia-Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day/release/3684899|website=Discogs|year=1969 |language=it|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Stevie Wonder – Il Sole È Di Tutti|url=https://www.discogs.com/Stevie-Wonder-Il-Sole-Di-Tutti/release/1218611|website=Discogs|year=1967 |language=en|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref> and an Italian LP.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Discografia Nazionale della canzone italiana|url=http://discografia.dds.it/scheda_titolo.php?idt=4229|website=discografia.dds.it|access-date=May 13, 2020}}</ref>

Wonder's appearance at the 1969 [[Harlem Cultural Festival]] opens the 2021 music documentary, ''[[Summer of Soul]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://greenpleasantland.com|title=This Green and Pleasant Land|author=Greene, Bryan|publisher=Poverty and Race Research Action Council|date=June 2017}}</ref> Wonder plays a drum solo during his set.

=== 1970s: Classic albums period ===

[[File:Oberheim 4-voice prototype.jpg|thumb|right|300px|The first prototype of the [[Oberheim Four Voice]] synthesizer, as used by Wonder. The front panel still shows the [[braille]] labeling.]]

In September 1970, at the age of 20, Wonder married [[Syreeta Wright]], a songwriter and former Motown secretary. Wright and Wonder worked together on the next album, ''[[Where I'm Coming From]]'' (1971), Wonder writing the music, and Wright helping with the lyrics.<ref name=Davis>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VXSaGI4-SZ8C&pg=PA72 |page=72|title=Stevie Wonder: Rhythms of Wonder|last= Davis|publisher=Pavilion Books|year= 2006|isbn=9781861059659}}</ref> Around this time, Wonder became interested in utilizing synthesizers after hearing albums by [[electronic music|electronic]] group [[Tonto's Expanding Head Band]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Stubbs |first1=David |title=Future Sounds: The Story of Electronic Music From Stockhausen to Skrillex |date=2018 |publisher=Faber & Faber |location=London|pages=177–179 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oa0wtAEACAAJ |access-date= May 10, 2019|isbn=9780571346974 }}</ref> Wonder and Wright wanted to "touch on the social problems of the world", and for the lyrics "to mean something".<ref name=Davis/> The album was released at around the same time as [[Marvin Gaye]]'s ''[[What's Going On (album)|What's Going On]]''. As both albums had similar ambitions and themes, they have been compared; in a contemporaneous review by [[Vince Aletti]] in ''Rolling Stone'', Gaye's was seen as successful, while Wonder's was seen as failing due to "self-indulgent and cluttered" production, "undistinguished" and "pretentious" lyrics, and an overall lack of unity and flow.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/where-im-coming-from-19710805 |title=Review: Where I'm Coming From and What's Going On |date=August 5, 1971|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|author-link=Vince Aletti|first= Vince |last= Aletti}}</ref> Also in 1970, Wonder co-wrote (and played numerous instruments on) the hit "[[It's a Shame (The Spinners song)|It's a Shame]]" for fellow Motown act [[The Spinners (U.S. band)|the Spinners]]. His contribution was meant to be a showcase of his talent and thus a weapon in his ongoing negotiations with Gordy about creative autonomy.<ref>{{cite AV media notes |title=The Very Best of Spinners |others=The Spinners |year=1993 |first=Kevin|last= Phinney |page=3 |type=CD booklet |publisher= Rhino Records}}</ref> Reaching his 21st birthday on May 13, 1971, Wonder allowed his Motown contract to expire.<ref>{{cite book|last=Posner|first=Gerald|author-link=Gerald Posner|title=Motown: Music, Money, Sex and Power|date=2003|publisher=Random House|isbn=978-0-375-50062-6|page=254}}</ref>

During this period, Wonder independently recorded two albums and signed a new contract with Motown Records. The 120-page contract was a precedent at Motown and gave Wonder a much higher [[Music Royalties|royalty]] rate.<ref name="rshrr80"/> He returned to Motown in March 1972 with ''[[Music of My Mind]]''. Unlike most previous albums on Motown, which usually consisted of a collection of singles, [[B-side]]s and covers, ''Music of My Mind'' was a full-length artistic statement with songs flowing together thematically.<ref name="rshrr80"/> Wonder's lyrics dealt with social, political, and mystical themes as well as standard romantic ones, while musically he began exploring overdubbing and recording most of the instrumental parts himself.<ref name="rshrr80"/> ''Music of My Mind'' marked the beginning of a long collaboration with [[Tonto's Expanding Head Band]] ([[Robert Margouleff]] and [[Malcolm Cecil]]),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tontosexpandingheadband.com/ |title=Tonto's Expanding Head Band |access-date=October 18, 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00w7bly |title=Radio 4 Programmes – Stevie's Wonder Men |publisher=BBC |date=November 30, 2010 |access-date=September 13, 2011}}</ref> and with lyricist [[Yvonne Wright]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ascap.com/repertory#/ace/writer/76500582/WRIGHT%20YVONNE%20LOWRENE |title=ACE Repertory |website=Ascap.com |date= |access-date=September 20, 2021}}</ref>

Released in late 1972, Wonder's album ''[[Talking Book]]'' featured the No. 1 hit "[[Superstition (song)|Superstition]]",<ref name="rsrg833">{{cite book|title=The New Rolling Stone Record Guide|title-link=The New Rolling Stone Record Guide|publisher=[[Random House]]/[[Rolling Stone Press]]|year=1983|isbn=0-394-72107-1|editor1-last=Marsh|editor1-first=Dave|pages=[https://archive.org/details/newrollingstoner00mars/page/556 556–557]|editor2-last=Swenson|editor2-first=John}}</ref> which is one of the most distinctive and famous examples of the sound of the Hohner [[Clavinet]] keyboard.<ref>{{cite web|title=The history of the Hohner Clavinet|url=http://www.clavinet.de/en/history.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090101090102/http://www.clavinet.de/en/history.html|archive-date=January 1, 2009|access-date=October 18, 2008|work=World of Clavinet}}</ref> ''Talking Book'' also featured "[[You Are the Sunshine of My Life]]", which also peaked at No. 1. During the same time as the album's release, Wonder began touring with the [[Rolling Stones]] to alleviate the negative effects from being pigeonholed as an R&B artist in America.<ref name="Werner-2004"/> His touring with the Stones was also a factor behind the success of both "Superstition" and "You Are the Sunshine of My Life".<ref name="rshrr80"/><ref>{{cite encyclopedia| title = Stevie Wonder – Biography| access-date = October 13, 2008 | encyclopedia = The Rolling Stone Encyclopedia of Rock & Roll | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/artists/steviewonder/biography/| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060216164954/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/steviewonder/biography| url-status=dead| archive-date=February 16, 2006}}</ref> Between them, the two songs won three [[Grammy Awards]].<ref name="Grammy">{{cite web|title=Stevie Wonder – Artist Profile|url=https://www.grammy.com/grammys/artists/stevie-wonder|access-date=January 13, 2020|work=Grammy.com}}</ref> On an episode of the children's television show ''[[Sesame Street]]'' that aired in April 1973,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1046111/ |title="Sesame Street" Episode 4.109 (1973) |work=IMDb.com |date=April 12, 1973 |access-date=October 13, 2008 }}</ref> Wonder and his band performed "Superstition", as well as an original called "Sesame Street Song", which demonstrated his abilities with television.
[[File:Stevie Wonder 1973.JPG|thumb|left|Wonder performing in 1973, during the early years of his "classic period"]]
Wonder's studio album ''[[Innervisions]]'', released in 1973, featured "[[Higher Ground (Stevie Wonder song)|Higher Ground]]" (No. 4 on the pop charts) as well as the trenchant "[[Living for the City]]" (No. 8).<ref name="rsrg833"/> Both songs reached No. 1 on the R&B charts. Popular ballads such as "Golden Lady" and "All in Love Is Fair" were also present, in a mixture of moods that nevertheless held together as a unified whole.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=http://www.rocksbackpages.com/article.html?ArticleID=3869 | title=Stevie Wonder: Innervisions | last=Kaye|first= Lenny | magazine=Rolling Stone | date=September 27, 1973 | author-link=Lenny Kaye}}</ref> ''Innervisions'' generated three more Grammy Awards, including [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]].<ref name="Grammy" /> The album is ranked No. 34 on ''Rolling Stone''{{'s}} [[Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time|500 Greatest Albums of All Time]].<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/stevie-wonder-innervisions-1063199/ 
|title=''Innervisions'' ranked 34th greatest album by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=September 22, 2020|access-date=December 7, 2020}}</ref> Wonder had become the most influential and acclaimed black musician of the early 1970s.<ref name="rshrr80" />

On August 6, 1973, Wonder was injured in a serious automobile accident while on tour in [[North Carolina]], when a car in which he was riding hit the back of a truck.<ref name="rshrr80">[[John Rockwell|Rockwell, John]], "Stevie Wonder", in Miller, Jim (ed.), ''The Rolling Stone Illustrated History of Rock & Roll'', [[Random House]]/[[Rolling Stone Press]], Revised Edition, 1980, pp. 364–368, {{ISBN|0-394-73938-8}}.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spinner.com/2008/08/29/twisted-tales-stevie-wonder-loses-two-more-senses-in-severe-car/ |title=Twisted Tales: Stevie Wonder Loses Two More Senses in Severe Car Crash |publisher=Spinner |date=August 29, 2008 |access-date=April 27, 2010}}</ref> This left him in a coma for four days and resulted in a partial loss of his sense of smell and a temporary loss of sense of taste.<ref>{{cite web | title = I heard that Stevie Wonder lost his sense of smell. Is that true? | access-date = October 22, 2008 | first = Gavin | last = Edwards | work = Rule Forty Two | url = http://rulefortytwo.com/secret-rock-knowledge/chapter-1/stevie-wonder-lost-his-sense-of-smell | url-status=dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20090106030029/http://rulefortytwo.com/secret-rock-knowledge/chapter-1/stevie-wonder-lost-his-sense-of-smell/ | archive-date = January 6, 2009 }}</ref> Despite orders from his doctor to refrain from performing, Wonder performed at a homecoming benefit for [[Shaw University]] in [[Raleigh, North Carolina|Raleigh]], in November 1973.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Ledbetter|first=Les|date=November 16, 1973|title=The Pop Life|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1973/11/16/archives/wonder-basks-anew-in-sunshine-of-fans-the-pop-life.html|access-date=July 19, 2021|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> Shaw was facing financial difficulties, so Wonder, who was a member of the university's board of trustees, rallied other acts including [[Exuma (musician)|Exuma]], [[Labelle|LaBelle]], and [[the Chambers Brothers]] to join the concert, which raised more than $10,000 for the school's scholarship fund.<ref>{{Cite journal|date=December 13, 1973|title=Stevie Wonder's Friends Rally To Support Shaw U.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=V7EDAAAAMBAJ&q=stevie+wonder+shaw+university+trustee&pg=PA25|journal=Jet|pages=25}}</ref>

Wonder embarked on a European tour in early 1974, performing in France at the [[Midem]] convention in [[Cannes]], in England at the [[Rainbow Theatre]] in London, and on the German television show ''[[Musikladen]]''.<ref>{{cite book |title=Stevie Wonder |first=Constanze |last=Elsner |year=1977 |page=[https://archive.org/details/steviewonder00cons/page/242 242] |publisher=Popular Library |url=https://archive.org/details/steviewonder00cons|url-access=registration |isbn=9780445043244 }}</ref> On his return to the United States, he played a sold-out concert at [[Madison Square Garden]] in March 1974, highlighting both up-tempo material and long, building improvisations on mid-tempo songs such as "[[Living for the City]]".<ref name="rshrr80" /> The album ''[[Fulfillingness' First Finale]]'' appeared in July 1974 and set two hits high on the pop charts: the No. 1 "[[You Haven't Done Nothin']]" and the Top Ten "[[Boogie On Reggae Woman|Boogie on Reggae Woman]]". The Album of the Year was again one of three Grammys won.<ref name="Grammy" />

The same year, Wonder took part in a Los Angeles [[jam session]] with ex-[[Beatles]] [[John Lennon]] and [[Paul McCartney]] that would become known as the bootleg album ''[[A Toot and a Snore in '74]]''.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.bootlegzone.com/album.php?name=mm9225&section=2| title = John Lennon & Paul McCartney – A Toot and a Snore in 74| access-date = February 18, 2007| work = BootlegZone| publisher = BootlegZone & François Vander Linden| archive-date = September 28, 2007| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070928141313/http://www.bootlegzone.com/album.php?name=mm9225&section=2| url-status = dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |first = Christopher |last = Sandford |author-link=Christopher Sandford (biographer) |title = McCartney | year = 2006 |publisher = Carroll & Graf |isbn = 978-0-7867-1614-2 |pages = [https://archive.org/details/mccartney00sand/page/227 227–229] |url = https://archive.org/details/mccartney00sand/page/227 }}</ref> He also co-wrote and produced the 1974 Syreeta Wright album ''[[Stevie Wonder Presents: Syreeta]]''.<ref>{{cite web| title = Stevie Wonder Presents Syreeta | access-date = October 30, 2008 | work = allmusic | url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r68098|pure_url=yes}}}}</ref>

On October 4, 1975, Wonder performed at the historic "[[Wonder Dream Concert]]" in [[Kingston, Jamaica|Kingston]], Jamaica, a benefit for the Jamaican Institute for the Blind.<ref>[[Timothy White (editor)|White, Timothy]] (2006), ''Catch a Fire: The Life of Bob Marley''. Macmillan. {{ISBN|0-8050-8086-4}}. p. 275.</ref> In 1975, he played harmonica on two tracks on [[Billy Preston]]'s album ''[[It's My Pleasure]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/its-my-pleasure-mw0000874017#credits | title=It's My Pleasure - Billy Preston &#124; Album &#124; AllMusic | website=[[AllMusic]] }}</ref>

By 1975, at the age of 25, Wonder had won two consecutive [[Grammy Award]]s: in 1974 for ''Innervisions'' and in 1975 for ''Fulfillingness' First Finale''.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hq1f922xR3MC&pg=PT56 |page=56|title=Awesome African-American Rock and Soul Musicians|first= David |last=Aretha|publisher=Enslow Publishers, Inc.|date= August 1, 2012|isbn=9781598451405}}</ref> In 1976, when [[Paul Simon]] won the Album of the Year Grammy for his ''[[Still Crazy After All These Years]]'', he wryly noted: "I'd like to thank Stevie Wonder, who didn't make an album this year."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wild |first1=David |title=Wild At The GRAMMYs: Joking With Stevie |url=https://www.grammy.com/news/wild-at-the-grammys-joking-with-stevie|website=GRAMMY.com |publisher=Recording Academy |access-date= May 7, 2022|date=December 2, 2014 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Paul Simon Wins Album Of The Year |url=https://www.grammy.com/videos/18th-annual-grammy-awards-album-of-the-year?page=14 |website=GRAMMY.com |publisher=Recording Academy |access-date= May 7, 2022|date=January 5, 2010 }}</ref>

The double album-with-extra-[[Extended Play|EP]], ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]'', was released in September 1976. Sprawling in style and sometimes lyrically difficult to fathom, the album was hard for some listeners to assimilate, yet is regarded by many as Wonder's crowning achievement and one of the most recognizable and accomplished albums in pop music history.<ref name="rshrr80"/><ref name="rsrg833"/> The album became the first by an American artist to debut straight at No. 1 in the ''[[Billboard charts|Billboard]]'' charts, where it stood for 14 non-consecutive weeks.<ref>{{cite book|first= Zeth |last= Lundy |title=Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life |series=33 1/3|publisher=Continuum|year= 2007| isbn= 978-0-8264-1926-2|page= 16}}</ref> Two tracks became No. 1 Pop/R&B hits: "[[I Wish (Stevie Wonder song)|I Wish]]" and "[[Sir Duke]]". The baby-celebratory "[[Isn't She Lovely]]?" was written about his newborn daughter Aisha, while songs such as "[[Love's in Need of Love Today]]" and "Village Ghetto Land" reflected a far more pensive mood. ''Songs in the Key of Life'' won Album of the Year and two other Grammys.<ref name=Grammy/> The album ranks 4th on ''[[Rolling Stone]]''{{'}}s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url= https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-albums-of-all-time-1062063/stevie-wonder-songs-in-the-key-of-life-2-1063229/
|title='Songs in the Key of Life' ranked 4th greatest album by Rolling Stone magazine|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=September 22, 2020|access-date=December 7, 2020}}</ref>

Also in 1976, Wonder heard about the demonstration of the Kurzweil Reading Machine, the first multi-font [[Optical character recognition|reading machine]] for the blind, on ''[[Today (U.S. TV program)|The Today Show]]'', and later became the user of the first production unit, beginning a long-term association between himself and [[Ray Kurzweil]].<ref name=raybio08>{{cite web  |title=A Brief Career Summary of Ray Kurzweil |url=https://www.kurzweiltech.com/aboutray.html |website=Kurzweil Technologies |date=2008 |access-date=16 July 2024}}</ref>

Until 1979's ''[[Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"]]'', his only further 1970s release was the retrospective three-disc album ''[[Looking Back (Stevie Wonder album)|Looking Back]]'' (1977), an anthology of his early Motown period.

=== 1980s: Commercial albums period ===
The mainly instrumental soundtrack album ''[[Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"]]'' (1979), was composed using an early music sampler called a [[Computer Music Melodian]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theguardian.com/music/2009/sep/28/whats-that-sound-sampler| first=David |last= McNamee | date = September 28, 2009 | title =Hey, what's that sound: Sampler | newspaper =The Guardian }}</ref> It was also his first [[digital recording]], and one of the earliest popular albums to use the technology, which Wonder used for all subsequent recordings. Wonder toured briefly with an orchestra in support of the album, and used a [[Fairlight CMI]] sampler onstage.<ref>{{cite journal |first=Andy |last=Stewart|title=The Name Behind the Name: Bruce Jackson – Apogee, Jands, Lake Technology|url=http://www.audiotechnology.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/AT40_NBN_Bruce_Jackson.pdf |journal=Audio Technology |issue=40|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314212533/http://www.audiotechnology.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/AT40_NBN_Bruce_Jackson.pdf |archive-date=March 14, 2012 }}</ref> In this year Wonder also wrote and produced the dance hit "[[Let's Get Serious (song)|Let's Get Serious]]", performed by [[Jermaine Jackson]] and ranked by ''Billboard'' as the No.&nbsp;1 R&B single of 1980.

''[[Hotter than July]]'' (1980) became Wonder's first platinum-selling single album, and its single "[[Happy Birthday (Stevie Wonder song)|Happy Birthday]]" was a successful vehicle for his campaign to establish [[Martin Luther King Jr.]]'s birthday as a [[Martin Luther King, Jr. Day|national holiday]]. The album also included "[[Master Blaster (Jammin')]]", "[[I Ain't Gonna Stand for It]]", and the sentimental ballad, "[[Lately (Stevie Wonder song)|Lately]]".

In 1982, Wonder released a retrospective of his 1970s work with ''[[Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I|Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium]]'', which included four new songs: the ten-minute [[funk]] classic "[[Do I Do]]" (which featured [[Dizzy Gillespie]]), "[[That Girl (Stevie Wonder song)|That Girl]]" (one of the year's biggest singles to chart on the [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]] side), "[[Front Line (song)|Front Line]]", a narrative about a soldier in the [[Vietnam War]] that Wonder wrote and sang in the first person, and "[[Ribbon in the Sky]]", one of his many classic compositions. He also gained a No. 1 hit that year in collaboration with [[Paul McCartney]] in their paean to racial harmony, "[[Ebony and Ivory]]".

Also in 1982, Wonder invited Raymond Kurzweil to his Los Angeles recording studio, Wonderland,<ref name="TheSynth">{{Cite book|title=The Synthesizer|last=Vail|first=Mark|publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]|year=2014|isbn=978-0195394894|page=76}}</ref> and asked if "we could use the extraordinarily flexible computer control methods on the beautiful sounds of acoustic instruments?" In response, and with Wonder as musical advisor, Kurzweil founded [[Kurzweil Music Systems]], which unveiled the [[Kurzweil K250]] in 1984.<ref>{{cite book|last=Kurzweil|first=Ray|title=The Age of Spiritual Machines|publisher=Penguin Books|isbn=978-0140282023|date=2000|page=127}}</ref><ref name=raybio08/>

In 1983, Wonder performed the song "Stay Gold", the theme to [[Francis Ford Coppola]]'s film adaptation of [[S. E. Hinton]]'s novel ''[[The Outsiders (film)|The Outsiders]]''. Wonder wrote the lyrics. In 1983, he scheduled an album to be entitled ''People Work, Human Play''. The album never surfaced and instead 1984 saw the release of Wonder's soundtrack album for ''[[The Woman in Red (1984 film)|The Woman in Red]]''. The lead single, "[[I Just Called to Say I Love You]]", was a No. 1 pop and R&B hit in both the United States and the United Kingdom, where it was placed 13th in the list of best-selling singles in the UK published in 2002. It went on to win an [[Academy award for best song]] in 1985. Wonder accepted the award in the name of [[Nelson Mandela]] and was subsequently banned from all South African radio by the [[Government of South Africa]].<ref>{{Cite news|title = Stevie Wonder Music Banned in South Africa|url = https://www.nytimes.com/1985/03/27/arts/stevie-wonder-music-banned-in-south-africa.html|newspaper = The New York Times|date = March 27, 1985|access-date = October 5, 2015|issn = 0362-4331}}</ref>

Incidentally, on the occasion of his 35th birthday, Stevie Wonder was honored by the [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution 1761|United Nations Special Committee Against Apartheid]] for his stance against racism in South Africa that same year (1985).<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=abADAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA13 |title=Wonder honored at U.N.|magazine=Jet|date=May 27, 1985|language=en}}</ref> The album also featured a guest appearance by [[Dionne Warwick]], singing the duet "It's You" with Stevie and a few songs of her own. Following the success of the album and its lead single, Wonder made an appearance on ''[[The Cosby Show]]'', in the episode "A Touch of Wonder", where he demonstrated his ability to sample.

The following year's ''[[In Square Circle]]'' featured the No. 1 pop hit "[[Part-Time Lover]]". The album also has a Top 10 Hit with "Go Home". It also featured the ballad "[[Overjoyed (Stevie Wonder song)|Overjoyed]]", which was originally written for ''Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"'', but did not make the album. He performed "Overjoyed" on ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' when he was the host. He was also featured in [[Chaka Khan]]'s cover of [[Prince (musician)|Prince]]'s "[[I Feel For You]]", alongside [[Melle Mel]], playing his signature harmonica. In roughly the same period he was also featured on harmonica on [[Eurythmics]]' single "[[There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)]]" and [[Elton John]]'s "[[I Guess That's Why They Call It the Blues]]".

Wonder was in a featured duet with [[Bruce Springsteen]] on the all-star charity single for African Famine Relief, "[[We Are the World]]", and he was part of another charity single the following year (1986), the [[AIDS]]-inspired "[[That's What Friends Are For]]". He played harmonica on the album ''[[Dreamland Express]]'' by [[John Denver]] in the song "If Ever", a song Wonder co-wrote with Stephanie Andrews; wrote the track "I Do Love You" for [[the Beach Boys]]' 1985 [[The Beach Boys (album)|self-titled album]]; and played harmonica on "[[Can't Help Lovin' Dat Man|Can't Help Lovin' That Man]]" on ''[[The Broadway Album]]'' by [[Barbra Streisand]].

In 1987, Wonder appeared on [[Michael Jackson]]'s ''[[Bad (album)|Bad]]'' album, on the duet "Just Good Friends". Jackson also sang a duet with him entitled "Get It" on Wonder's 1987 album ''[[Characters (Stevie Wonder album)|Characters]]''. This was a minor hit single, as were "Skeletons" and "You Will Know". Wonder played harmonica on a remake of his own song, "Have a Talk with God" (from ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]'' in 1976), on [[Jon Gibson (Christian musician)|Jon Gibson]]'s album ''Body & Soul'' (1989).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/body-soul-mw0000921534|title = Body & Soul – Jon Gibson &#124; Songs, Reviews, Credits |website = [[AllMusic]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web | url=https://archive.org/details/podcast_frontline-records_rewind-44-jon-gibson-talks-ab_1000336528628 | title=REWIND 44: Jon Gibson talks about songs from his latest album "Storyteller" and plays a few of them live for us. Jon tells of his father's near death conversion experience and is joined by his two boys for a cover of Stevie Wonder's "Have a Ta | date=February 27, 2015 |author=Frontline Records}}</ref>

=== 1990s: ''Jungle Fever'' and 1996 Olympics ===
[[File:StevieWonderGrammyAwards.jpg|alt=|thumb|upright|Wonder backstage at the [[1990 Grammy Awards]]]]
[[File:Stevie Wonder 1994.jpg|thumb|upright|Wonder in 1994]]

Wonder continued to release new material, but at a slower pace. He recorded a soundtrack album for [[Spike Lee]]'s film ''[[Jungle Fever]]'' in 1991. From this album, singles and videos were released for "Gotta Have You", "Fun Day" (remix only), "These Three Words" and "Jungle Fever". The B-side to the "Gotta Have You" single was "Feeding Off The Love of the Land", which was played during the end credits of the movie ''Jungle Fever'' but was not included on the soundtrack. A piano and vocal version of "Feeding Off The Love of the Land" was also released on the ''[[Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal]]'' compilation. ''[[Conversation Peace]]'' and the live album ''[[Natural Wonder]]'' were released in the 1990s.<ref name="Pete Lewis">{{cite magazine |url=http://www.bluesandsoul.com/feature/333/stevies_in_town/ |title=Stevie Wonder interview by Pete Lewis |magazine=Blues & Soul |date=March 1995 |access-date=September 18, 2010 |archive-date=November 7, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121107080549/http://www.bluesandsoul.com/feature/333/stevies_in_town/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1992, Wonder went to perform at [[Panafest]], a new international festival of music held biennially in [[Ghana]]; it was during this trip that he composed many of the songs featured on ''Conversation Peace'', and he would describe in a 1995 interview the powerful impact his visit to that country had: "I'd only been there for 18 hours when I decided I'd eventually move there permanently."<ref name="Pete Lewis" /><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c1U2WpNdn8MC&pg=PA78|title=Stevie Wonder: Musician|first=Jeremy K. |last=Brown|publisher=Infobase Publishing|date= 2010|isbn=9781438134222|pages=78–79}}</ref> In 1994, as co-chair of Panafest that year,<ref>{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p43DLXc4A8oC&q=Panafest+1994+&pg=PA197|title=Controversies in Tourism|editor-first=Omar|editor-last=Moufakkir|editor2=Peter M. Burns|chapter=The Golden Jubilee of Independence and Panafest in Ghana: 'All that glitters is not Gold'|first=E.|last=Addo|publisher=CABI (CAB International)|date=2012|isbn= 9781845938130|page=197}}</ref> he headlined a concert at the [[National Theatre of Ghana|National Theatre]] in [[Accra]], capital city of Ghana.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/213814898.pdf|title=Gateway To Africa: The Pilgrimage Tourism of Diaspora Africans to Ghana|page=72|first=Ann|last=Reed|publisher=Department of Anthropology, Indiana University|date=July 2006|access-date=May 7, 2022}}</ref>

Among his other activities, Wonder played harmonica on the track "[[Deuce (song)|Deuce]]" (sung by [[Lenny Kravitz]]) for the 1994 tribute album ''[[Kiss My Ass: Classic Kiss Regrooved]]'';<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RQgEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA12 |magazine=Billboard|title=Stars Kiss Up on Forthcoming Mercury Tribute Compilation|first=Jim |last= Bessman|author-link=Jim Bessman|date=April 23, 1994|page=12}}</ref> sang at the [[1996 Summer Olympics closing ceremony]];<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/olympics/daily/aug/05/close5.htm |title=A Curtain Call in Atlanta|access-date=November 17, 2008 |first= Jennifer |last=  Frey|author-link=Jennifer Frey|date=August 5, 1996 |work=WashingtonPost.com}}</ref> collaborated in 1997 with [[Babyface (musician)|Babyface]] on "[[How Come, How Long]]", a song about domestic violence that was nominated for a Grammy Award;<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bT1jf8PcqAUC&pg=PA995 |page=995|title=Icons of Black America: Breaking Barriers and Crossing Boundaries, Volume 1|first= Matthew C. |last= Whitaker|author-link=Matthew C. Whitaker|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year= 2011|isbn=9780313376429}}</ref> and played harmonica on [[Sting (musician)|Sting]]'s 1999 "[[Brand New Day (Sting album)|Brand New Day]]".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tower.com/brand-new-day-sting-cd/wapi/105943193 |title=Brand New Day (Import) (CD) |access-date=November 17, 2008 |work=Tower.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090104235831/http://www.tower.com/brand-new-day-sting-cd/wapi/105943193 |archive-date=January 4, 2009 }}</ref> In early 1999, Wonder performed in the [[Super Bowl XXXIII halftime show]].<ref>{{cite web |title=26 Super Bowl Halftime Shows Ranked, Including Lady Gaga (Videos) |url=https://www.thewrap.com/26-super-bowl-halftime-shows-ranked-gaga-timberlake/ |website=[[TheWrap]] |first=Jeremy |last=Fuster|access-date=14 February 2020 |date= February 4, 2018}}</ref>

In May 1999, [[Rutgers University]] presented Wonder with an [[Doctor of Fine Arts|honorary doctorate degree in fine arts]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Newman |first1=Andy |title=Commencements; At Rutgers, a Graduate Is Not That Young at 15 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1999/05/20/nyregion/commencements-at-rutgers-a-graduate-is-not-that-young-at-15.html |access-date=August 23, 2020 |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=May 20, 1999}}</ref> In December 1999, Wonder announced that he was interested in pursuing an [[visual prosthesis|intraocular retinal prosthesis]] to partially restore his sight.<ref>{{cite news |title=Stevie Wonder hoping for experimental eye surgery |url=http://archives.cnn.com/1999/SHOWBIZ/Music/12/03/stevie.wonder/ |access-date=June 4, 2007 |date=December 3, 1999 |publisher=CNN |archive-date=April 11, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100411215941/http://archives.cnn.com/1999/SHOWBIZ/Music/12/03/stevie.wonder/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Into the 21st century: Later career and collaborations ===
In 2000, Wonder contributed two new songs to the soundtrack for [[Spike Lee]]'s ''[[Bamboozled]]'' album ("Misrepresented People" and "Some Years Ago").<ref>{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r500165|pure_url=yes}}|title=Bamboozled – Overview|work=allmusic|access-date=November 17, 2008}}</ref> Wonder continues to record and perform; though mainly occasional appearances and guest performances, he did do two tours, and released one album of new material, 2005's ''[[A Time to Love (album)|A Time to Love]]''. In June 2006, Wonder made a guest appearance on [[Busta Rhymes]]' album ''[[The Big Bang (Busta Rhymes album)|The Big Bang]]'', on the track "Been through the Storm". He sings the refrain and plays the piano on the [[Dr. Dre]]- and [[Sha Money XL]]–produced track. He appeared again on the last track of [[Snoop Dogg]]'s 2006 album ''[[Tha Blue Carpet Treatment]]'', "Conversations". The song is a remake of "Have a Talk with God" from ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''. In 2006, Wonder staged a duet with [[Andrea Bocelli]] on the latter's album ''[[Amore (Andrea Bocelli album)|Amore]]'', offering harmonica and additional vocals on "Canzoni Stonate". Wonder also performed at Washington, D.C.'s 2006 ''[[A Capitol Fourth]]'' celebration.

His other key appearances include performing at the opening ceremony of the [[2002 Winter Paralympics]] in [[Salt Lake City]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://2002.ksl.com/news-6822i.php?p=0/ |title=Opening Ceremony Kicks Off Paralympics |access-date=October 12, 2008 |date=March 7, 2002 |work=KSL.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927132237/http://2002.ksl.com/news-6822i.php?p=0%2F |archive-date=September 27, 2011 }}</ref> the 2005 [[Live 8 concert, Philadelphia|Live 8 concert in Philadelphia]],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thedp.com/article/2005/07/philadelphia_basking_in_afterglow_of_live_8 |title=Philadelphia basking in afterglow of Live 8|first=Marissa |last=Montenegro |access-date=June 8, 2023 |date=July 7, 2005 |work=[[The Daily Pennsylvanian]]}}</ref> the pre-game show for [[Super Bowl XL]] in 2006,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/pictures/showtime-at-the-super-bowl/|title=Showtime At The Super Bowl|website=CBS News|date=February 5, 2006|access-date=December 2, 2023}}</ref> the [[We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration at the Lincoln Memorial|Obama Inaugural Celebration]] in 2009,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2009/scene/markets-festivals/we-are-one-the-obama-inaugural-celebration-1200473270/|title=We Are One: The Obama Inaugural Celebration|access-date=December 2, 2023|date=January 18, 2009|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|last=Gallo |first=Phil}}</ref> and the opening ceremony of the [[2011 Special Olympics World Summer Games]] in [[Athens]], Greece.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yoERPM45M8I |title=Stevie Wonder & Vanessa Willliams in Athens Special Olympics 2011.mp4 |publisher=BestOfGreeceOfficial |access-date=December 2, 2023|via=YouTube|date=June 26, 2011 }}</ref>

[[File:Stevie Wonder 2.jpg|alt=Wonder speaking into a microphone|thumb|Wonder in 2006]]

Wonder's first new album in 10 years, ''[[A Time to Love (album)|A Time to Love]]'', was released in October 2005 to lower sales than previous albums, and lukewarm reviews—most reviewers appearing frustrated at the end of the long delay to get an album that mainly copied the style of Wonder's "classic period" without doing anything new.<ref>{{cite book|page=87|title=Stevie Wonder: Musician|first= Jeremy K. |last= Brown|publisher=Infobase Publishing|year= 2010}}</ref> The first single, "[[So What the Fuss]]", was released in April. A second single, "[[From the Bottom of My Heart (Stevie Wonder song)|From the Bottom of My Heart]]", was a hit on adult-contemporary [[Rhythm and blues|R&B]] radio. The album also featured a duet with [[India Arie]] on the title track "A Time to Love".

Wonder did a 13-date tour of North America in 2007, starting in [[San Diego]] on August 23; this was his first U.S. tour in more than 10 years.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/stevie-wonder-announces-thirteen-date-tour-with-surprise-los-angeles-concert-20070802|title=Stevie Wonder Announces Thirteen-Date Tour|last=Wood|first=Mikael|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=August 2, 2007}}</ref> On September 8, 2008, he started the European leg of his Wonder Summer's Night Tour, the first time he had toured Europe in more than a decade. His opening show was at the [[National Indoor Arena]] in [[Birmingham]], in the [[English Midlands]]. During the tour, he played eight UK gigs; four at the [[The O2 arena (London)|O2 Arena]] in London (filmed in HD and subsequently released as a live-in-concert release on DVD and Blu-Ray, ''Live At Last''),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.steviewonder.org.uk/discography/dvd/live_at_last.html|title=Stevie Wonder – Live At Last DVD|website=www.steviewonder.org.uk}}</ref> two in Birmingham and two at the [[M.E.N. Arena]] in [[Manchester]].<ref name="tours"/>

Wonder's other stop in the tour's European leg also found him performing in the Netherlands ([[Rotterdam]]), Sweden ([[Stockholm]]), Germany ([[Cologne]], [[Mannheim]] and [[Munich]]), Norway ([[Hamar]]), France ([[Paris]]), Italy ([[Milan]]) and [[Denmark]] ([[Aalborg]]). Wonder also toured Australia ([[Perth]], [[Adelaide]], [[Melbourne]], [[Sydney]] and [[Brisbane]]) and New Zealand ([[Christchurch]], [[Auckland]] and [[New Plymouth]]) in October and November.<ref name="tours">{{cite web|url=http://www.steviewonder.org.uk/tours.htm|title=Stevie Wonder – Tours/Appearances|work=steviewonder.org.uk|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081224142944/http://steviewonder.org.uk/tours.htm|archive-date=December 24, 2008 }}</ref> His 2010 tour included a two-hour set at the [[Bonnaroo Music Festival]] in [[Manchester, Tennessee]], a stop at the [[Hard Rock Calling]] festival in [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]], London, and appearances at England's [[Glastonbury Festival]], Rotterdam's [[North Sea Jazz Festival]], a concert in [[Bergen]], Norway, and a concert in [[Dublin]], Ireland, at [[3Arena (Dublin)|The O<sub>2</sub>]] on June 24.<ref name="tours" />

[[File:Barack Obama presents Stevie Wonder with Gershwin Award crop.jpg|alt=Barack Obama smiling and holding a medal and presenting it to Wonder|thumb|[[Barack Obama]] presenting Wonder with the [[Gershwin Prize]] in 2009|250x250px]]

Wonder's harmonica playing can be heard on the 2009 Grammy-nominated "Never Give You Up", featuring CJ Hilton and [[Raphael Saadiq]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Dodds|first=Dan|date=November 17, 2008|title=Call me Stevie!|url=http://www.souljonespresents.com/heroes_raphael.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090416194457/http://www.souljonespresents.com/heroes_raphael.html|archive-date=April 16, 2009|quote=Raphael Saadiq talks to ''Soul Jones''}}</ref>

Wonder sang at the [[Michael Jackson memorial service]] in 2009,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://newsroom.mtv.com/2009/07/07/michael-jackson-memorial-live-blog/|title=Michael Jackson Memorial Service: The Live Blog|work=mtv.com|archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20090709060354/http://newsroom.mtv.com//2009//07//07//michael-jackson-memorial-live-blog//|date= July 7, 2009|archive-date=July 9, 2009|url-status=dead|access-date=July 7, 2009 }}</ref> at [[Etta James]]' funeral, in 2012,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/28/showbiz/etta-james-funeral/index.html|title=Etta James remembered as an authentic voice at funeral|last=Martinez|first=Michael|date=January 28, 2012|publisher=CNN|access-date=January 29, 2012}}</ref> a month later at [[Whitney Houston]]'s memorial service,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://idolator.com/6189781/whitney-houstons-funeral-stevie-wonder-sings-ribbons-in-the-sky|archive-url=https://archive.today/20120709130655/http://idolator.com/6189781/whitney-houstons-funeral-stevie-wonder-sings-ribbons-in-the-sky|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 9, 2012|title=Whitney Houston's Funeral: Stevie Wonder Sings 'Ribbons In The Sky'|last=Alexander|first=X.|date=February 19, 2012|newspaper=[[Idolator (website)|Idolator]]|access-date=February 19, 2012}}</ref> and at the funeral of [[Aretha Franklin]] in 2018.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/music/2018/08/31/aretha-franklins-funeral-celebrities-pay-tribute-queen-soul/1146846002/|first=Maria |last=Puente|title=Aretha Franklin's funeral: Ariana Grande, Bill Clinton, Chaka Khan, Jennifer Hudson, Stevie Wonder pay tribute|work=USA Today|date=August 31, 2018|access-date=September 1, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Kennedy |first1=Gerrick D. |title=Aretha Franklin's funeral: Gladys Knight, Stevie Wonder offer stirring final tributes |url=http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-entertainment-news-updates-2018-aretha-franklin-s-funeral-gladys-1535755921-htmlstory.html |date=August 31, 2018|access-date=September 1, 2018 |work=Los Angeles Times}}</ref>

Wonder appeared on singer [[Celine Dion]]'s studio album ''[[Loved Me Back to Life]]'', performing a cover of his 1985 song "Overjoyed".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.radio.com/2013/03/14/celine-dion-new-album-stevie-wonder-adele-procuers-ne-yo/|title=Celine Dion's New Album Features Stevie Wonder, Ne-Yo, Adele Producers|first=Shannon|last=Carlin|website=radio.com|date=March 14, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130728154408/http://news.radio.com/2013/03/14/celine-dion-new-album-stevie-wonder-adele-procuers-ne-yo/|archive-date=July 28, 2013|url-status=dead|access-date=August 11, 2013 }}</ref> The album was released in October 2013. He was also featured on two tracks on [[Mark Ronson]]'s 2015 album ''[[Uptown Special]]'', and the track "[[Stop Trying to Be God]]" on [[Travis Scott]]'s 2018 album ''[[Astroworld (album)|Astroworld]]''.<ref>{{Cite magazine|last=Leight|first=Elias|date=August 7, 2018|title=How Travis Scott (and His A&R) Got John Mayer, Drake and Stevie Wonder on the Same Album|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/travis-scotts-ar-thinks-astroworld-should-win-a-grammy-706064/|magazine=[[Rolling Stone]]|language=en-US}}</ref>

In October 2020, Wonder announced that he had a new [[vanity label]] released via [[Republic Records]], So What the Fuss Records, marking the first time his music was not released through Motown Records. The announcement was paired with the release of two singles: "[[Can't Put It in the Hands of Fate]]", a "socially-conscious" funk track, and "Where Is Our Love Song", whose proceeds will go towards the organization [[Feeding America]].<ref>{{Cite magazine |magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]] |date=October 13, 2020 |access-date=October 13, 2020 |last=Havens |first=Lyndsey |title=Stevie Wonder Returns with New Music on His Own Republic Records Imprint |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/9464244/stevie-wonder-leaves-motown-releasing-new-songs-what-fuss/}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2020/oct/13/stevie-wonder-new-songs-music|title=Stevie Wonder rejects 'all lives matter' in first new music in four years|first=Ben |last=Beaumont-Thomas|newspaper=The Guardian|date=October 13, 2020}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|
url=https://variety.com/2020/music/news/stevie-wonder-signs-with-republic-two-new-songs-1234801631/|title=Stevie Wonder Partners With Republic for New Label, Releases Two New Songs|first1=Jem |last1=Aswad|first2= Chris|last2= Willman|work=Variety|date=October 13, 2020}}</ref>

In June 2021, Wonder appeared in the documentary ''[[Summer of Soul]]'', directed by Ahmir "[[Questlove]]" Thompson, showing the [[Harlem Cultural Festival]] of 1969. In never-before-seen footage, a young 19-year-old Stevie Wonder is seen performing in front of thousands of people in Harlem. His performance shown in the documentary included "[[It's Your Thing]]" by [[the Isley Brothers]] and a drum solo. Wonder talks about the turning point made in his career during this time and how this helped him get out of being seen as just a child star.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.arkansasonline.com/news/2021/jul/11/on-stevie-wonder-and-the-summer-of-soul/|title=CRITICAL MASS: On Stevie Wonder and the 'Summer of Soul'|first=Philip|last=Martin|work=Arkansas Democrat Gazette|date=July 11, 2021}}</ref>

In October 2022, Wonder celebrated his 50th anniversary of his project ''[[Talking Book]]''.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/10/27/arts/music/stevie-wonder-talking-book.html|title=50 Years Ago, Stevie Wonder Heard the Future|newspaper=The New York Times|date=October 27, 2022}}</ref>

On August 30, 2024, Wonder released his first new song in four years, "Can We Fix Our Nation's Broken Heart".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/stevie-wonder-can-we-fix-our-nations-broken-heart-stream-1235764955/|title=Stevie Wonder Calls for Unity in New Song 'Can We Fix Our Nation's Broken Heart'|newspaper=Billboard|first=Rania|last=Aniftos|date=August 30, 2024}}</ref>

=== Future projects ===
By June 2008, Wonder was working on two projects simultaneously: a new album called ''The Gospel Inspired by Lula'', which will deal with the various spiritual and cultural crises facing the world, and ''Through the Eyes of Wonder'', an album he has described as a performance piece that will reflect his experience as a blind man. Wonder was also keeping the door open for a collaboration with [[Tony Bennett]] and [[Quincy Jones]] concerning a rumored jazz album.<ref>{{cite magazine|last=Graff|first=Gary|date=June 24, 2008|title=Stevie Wonder Pressing On With New Albums|magazine=Billboard|url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/1044994/stevie-wonder-pressing-on-with-new-albums|access-date=January 13, 2020}}</ref> Bennett and Wonder recorded a rendition of "For Once in My Life" which earned them a Grammy for best pop collaboration with vocals in 2006;<ref name="Grammy" /> Bennett died in 2023 and Jones died in 2024.

In 2013, Wonder revealed that he had been recording new material for two albums, ''When the World Began'' and ''Ten Billion Hearts'', in collaboration with producer [[David Foster]], to be released in 2014.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gibsone|first=Harriet|date=October 30, 2013|title=Stevie Wonder confirms first new albums in eight years|work=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/2013/oct/30/stevie-wonder-new-album-release|access-date=December 1, 2013}}</ref> The albums have not seen release.

In October 2020, while promoting his two recent singles, Wonder mentioned both ''Through the Eyes of Wonder'' and ''The Gospel Inspired by Lula'' as projects in development (the former as an album that may feature both singles, and the latter as a future album he may record with his former label Motown).<ref>{{Cite web|date=October 13, 2020|title=Stevie Wonder shares two new songs and leaves Motown Records after nearly 60 years|url=https://www.nme.com/en_asia/news/music/stevie-wonder-shares-two-new-songs-and-leaves-motown-records-after-nearly-60-years-2783456|access-date=January 28, 2021|website=NME |first=Damian|last= Jones|language=en}}</ref>

== Legacy ==
[[File:Stevie Wonder receives a standing ovation in the East Room of the White House, 2011.jpg|thumb|260x260px|Wonder receiving a standing ovation in the [[East Room]] of the [[White House]] in 2011|alt=]]
[[File:Handprint of Stevie Wonder.jpg|thumb|258x258px|Handprint of Stevie Wonder with autograph: "LOVE IS THE KEY Happy Birthday [[Martin Luther King Jr.|Dr. King]] 9.26.83" Atlantic City Boardwalk New Jersey USA 2006]]
Wonder is one of the most notable [[popular music]] figures of the second half of the 20th century. He is one of the [[most successful musicians|most successful songwriters and musicians]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Perone|first=James E.|url=https://archive.org/details/soundofsteviewon00pero|title=The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music|publisher=Greenwood Publishing|year=2006|isbn=0-275-98723-X|pages=xi–xii}}</ref> Virtually a [[one-man band]] during his peak years, his use of synthesizers and further [[electronic musical instrument]]s during the 1970s helped expand the sound of [[Contemporary R&B|R&B]].<ref name="AllMusic">{{Cite web|title=Stevie Wonder {{!}} Biography & History|url=https://www.allmusic.com/artist/stevie-wonder-mn0000622805/biography|first=Steve |last=Huey|access-date=July 11, 2020|website=AllMusic|language=en-us}}</ref> He is also credited as one of the artists who helped drive R&B into the [[album era]], by crafting his [[LP record|LPs]] as cohesive, consistent statements with complex sounds.<ref name="AllMusic" /> His "classic period", which culminated in 1976, was marked by his funky keyboard style, personal control of production, and use of integrated series of songs to make [[concept album]]s. In 1979, Wonder used Computer Music Inc.'s early music sampler, the [[Computer Music Melodian|Melodian]], on his soundtrack album ''[[Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"]]''. This was his first [[digital recording]] and one of the earliest popular albums to use the technology, which Wonder used for all subsequent recordings.

Wonder recorded several critically acclaimed albums and hit singles, and also wrote and produced songs for many of his label mates and outside artists as well. In his childhood, he was best known for his harmonica work, but today he is better known for his keyboard skills and vocal ability. He plays the piano, synthesizer, harmonica, [[congas]], drums, [[bongo drum|bongos]], organ, [[melodica]] and [[Clavinet]]. Wonder has been credited as a pioneer and influence to musicians of various genres, including pop, [[rhythm and blues]], [[Soul music|soul]], [[funk]] and rock.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Stevie Wonder {{!}} Biography, Albums, Songs, & Facts|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Stevie-Wonder|date=April 2, 2024|access-date=December 31, 2019|first=Richard|last= Williams|author-link=Richard Williams (journalist)|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en}}</ref>

Wonder's "classic period" is generally agreed to be between 1972 and 1976.<ref>{{cite book|last=Price|first=Emmett George|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nVxgs_E57_EC&pg=PA894|title=Encyclopedia of African American Music, Volume 3|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2011|isbn=9780313341991|page=894}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Brown|first=Jeremy K.|title=Stevie Wonder: Musician|publisher=Infobase Publishing|year=2010|isbn=978-1-60413-685-2|series=Black Americans of Achievement|page=57}}</ref><ref name="Allmusic2001">{{cite book|last1=Bogdanov|first1=Vladimir|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xR7MdpuSlAEC&pg=PT420|title=All Music Guide: The Definitive Guide to Popular Music|last2=Woodstra|first2=Chris|last3=Erlewine|first3=Stephen Thomas|publisher=Hal Leonard Corporation|year=2001|isbn=0-87930-627-0|edition=4th|pages=447–448}}</ref> Some observers see aspects of 1971's ''[[Where I'm Coming From]]'' as certain indications of the beginning of Wonder's "classic period", such as its new funky keyboard style that Wonder used throughout the classic period.<ref name="Allmusic2001" /> Some determine Wonder's first "classic" album to be 1972's ''[[Music of My Mind]]'', on which he attained personal control of production, and on which he programmed a series of songs integrated with one another to make a [[concept album]].<ref name="Allmusic2001" /> Others skip over early 1972 and determine the beginning of the classic period to be in late 1972 with ''[[Talking Book]]'',<ref>{{cite book|last=Cramer|first=Alfred William|title=Musicians and Composers of the 20th Century|publisher=Salem Press|year=2009|isbn=978-1-58765-517-3|volume=5|page=1645}}</ref> the album on which Wonder "hit his stride".<ref name="Allmusic2001" />

{{Quote box
| quote = Let me put it this way: Wherever I go in the world, I always take a copy of ''Songs in the Key of Life''. For me, it's the best album ever made, and I'm always left in awe after I listen to it. When people in decades and centuries to come talk about the history of music, they will talk about [[Louis Armstrong]], [[Duke Ellington]], [[Ray Charles]] and Stevie Wonder [...] he [Wonder] evolved into an amazing songwriter and a genuine musical force of nature. He's so multitalented that it's hard to pinpoint exactly what it is that makes him one of the greatest ever. But first, there's that voice. Along with Ray Charles, he's the greatest R&B singer who ever lived.
| source = [[Elton John]] on Stevie Wonder.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-greatest-artists-147446/|title=100 Greatest Artists. The Beatles, Eminem and more of the best of the best|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 3, 2010}}</ref>
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}}Wonder's albums during his "classic period" were considered very influential in the music world: the 1983 ''[[Rolling Stone Record Guide]]'' said they "pioneered stylistic approaches that helped to determine the shape of pop music for the next decade";<ref name="rsrg833"/> in 2005, American recording artist [[Kanye West]] said of his own work: "I'm not trying to compete with what's out there now. I'm really trying to compete with ''[[Innervisions]]'' and ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''. It sounds musically blasphemous to say something like that, but why not set that as your bar?"<ref>Jones, Steve (August 21, 2005). [https://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2005-08-21-kanye-main_x.htm "West hopes to register with musical daring"]. ''[[USA Today]]''.</ref> [[Slate (magazine)|''Slate'']] magazine's pop critic, Jack Hamilton, said: "Most Americans follow up their 21st birthdays with a hangover; Stevie Wonder opted for arguably the greatest sustained run of creativity in the history of popular music. Wonder's "classic period"—the polite phrase for when Stevie spent five years ferociously dunking on the entire history of popular music with the releases of ''Music of My Mind, Talking Book, Innervisions, Fulfillingness' First Finale,'' and ''Songs in the Key of Life'' [...] We've never heard anything like it since, and barring another reincarnation, we never will again."<ref>{{Cite web|date=December 18, 2016|title=The Greatest Creative Run in the History of Popular Music|url=https://redux.slate.com/cover_story/2016/12/the-greatest-creative-run-in-the-history-of-pop-music.html|first=Jack|last= Hamilton|access-date=July 12, 2020|website=Slate Magazine|language=en}}</ref>

{{Quote box
| quote = The musicianship, the arranging. Stevie Wonder is the genius in our midst. You know, I’d put him pretty close to [[Johann Sebastian Bach | Bach]].
| source = [[Errollyn Wallen]], [[Master of the King's Music]] on Stevie Wonder.<ref>{{Cite web |title=BBC Radio 4 - Desert Island Discs, Errollyn Wallen, composer |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00213d9 |access-date=2024-11-23 |website=BBC |language=en-GB}}</ref>
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}}Wonder has recorded more than 30 U.S. top-ten hits, including ten [[Billboard Hot 100|U.S. number-one hits on the pop charts]], well as 20 R&B number one hits. He has sold over 100 million records, 19.5&nbsp;million of which are albums;<ref>{{cite web|date=January 2014|title=Top Selling Artists|url=http://riaa.com/goldandplatinum.php?content_selector=top-selling-artists|work=RIAA}}</ref> he is one of the [[List of best-selling music artists|top 60 best-selling music artists]] with combined sales of singles and albums.<ref>{{cite news|last=Dobuzinskis|first=Alex|date=June 20, 2008|title=Stevie Wonder embarks on "magical" summer tour|work=[[Reuters]]|url=http://www.reuters.com/article/us-wonder-idUSN2019301520080620|access-date=September 16, 2011}}</ref> Wonder was the first [[Motown Records|Motown]] artist and second [[African Americans|African-American]] musician to win an [[Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Song|Best Original Song]], which he won for his 1984 hit single "[[I Just Called to Say I Love You]]" from the movie ''[[The Woman in Red (1984 film)|The Woman in Red]]''. Wonder won 25 [[Grammy Award]]s<ref name="Grammy" /> (the most ever won by a solo artist), as well as a [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award|Lifetime Achievement Award]]. His albums of the "classic period", ''Innervisions'' (1973), ''[[Fulfillingness' First Finale]]'' (1974) and ''Songs in the Key of Life'' (1976), all won the [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year]], making him the tied-record holder for the most [[Grammy Award records#Most Album of the Year wins|Album of the Year wins]], with three. He is also the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases. He has been inducted into the [[Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame]], [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame|Rock and Rock Hall of Fame]] and [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]], and has received a star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Grove|first=Rashad|date=March 8, 2019|title=Stevie Wonder and Aretha Franklin Headline 2019 National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame Inductees|url=https://thesource.com/2019/03/08/stevie-wonder-and-aretha-franklin-headline-2019-national-rhythm-blues-hall-of-fame-inductees/|access-date=December 4, 2019|website=The Source {{!}} The Magazine of Hip Hop Music, Culture and Politics|language=en-US}}</ref><ref name="RockHOF">{{cite web|last=Hill|first=Michael|date=1989|title=Stevie Wonder – Hall of Fame Essay|url=https://www.rockhall.com/inductees/stevie-wonder|access-date=January 13, 2020|work=Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}</ref><ref name="SongwritersHOF">[http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibits/C25 Songwriters Hall of Fame – Stevie Wonder] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081119135529/http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/exhibits/C25|date=November 19, 2008}}. Retrieved October 11, 2008.</ref> He has also been awarded the [[Polar Music Prize]].<ref name="PolarMusic">[http://www.polarmusicprize.com/ Polar Music Prize] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225020601/http://www.polarmusicprize.com/ |date=February 25, 2020 }}. Retrieved October 11, 2008.</ref> ''Rolling Stone'' named him the seventh greatest singer<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-singers-all-time-1234642307/stevie-wonder-24-1234643204/|title=The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time|date=January 1, 2023|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=October 27, 2023}}</ref> and fifteenth greatest artist of all time.<ref>{{cite magazine |title= Stevie Wonder ranked 15th greatest artist by Rolling Stone|magazine=Rolling Stone|date=December 3, 2010| url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/100-greatest-artists-147446/stevie-wonder-4-29070/|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref> In 2024, [[Neil McCormick]] of ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' ranked him the fifth greatest keyboard player of all time.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/music/news/elton-john-keyboard-players-stevie-wonder/ | title=The 10 greatest keyboard players of all time – ranked | work=The Daily Telegraph | first=Neil | last=McCormick | date=16 October 2024 | access-date=22 October 2024}}</ref> In June 2009, he became the fourth artist to receive the [[Montreal Jazz Festival]] Spirit Award.<ref name="SpiritAward">{{cite web |url=http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/maison-du-festival-online/spirit-award.aspx |title=Spirit Award |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090617233746/http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/maison-du-festival-online/spirit-award.aspx |archive-date=June 17, 2009 |access-date=July 1, 2009 }}</ref>

In 2003, ''Rolling Stone''{{'}}s "[[Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time|500 Greatest Albums of All Time]]" list included ''[[Innervisions]]'' at number 23,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/innervisions-stevie-wonder-19691231|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902082430/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/innervisions-stevie-wonder-19691231|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 2, 2011|title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time {{!}} Innervisions ranked no. 23|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref> ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]'' at number 56 (promoted to number 4 for the 2020 edition),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/songs-in-the-key-of-life-stevie-wonder-19691231|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902071542/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/songs-in-the-key-of-life-stevie-wonder-19691231|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 2, 2011|title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time {{!}} Songs in the Key of Life ranked no. 56|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref> ''[[Talking Book]]'' at number 90 (promoted to number 59 for the 2020 edition),<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/talking-book-stevie-wonder-19691231|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902034541/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/talking-book-stevie-wonder-19691231|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 2, 2011|title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time {{!}} Talking Book ranked no. 90|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref> and ''[[Music of My Mind]]'' at number 284.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/music-of-my-mind-stevie-wonder-19691231|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110902081158/http://www.rollingstone.com/music/lists/500-greatest-albums-of-all-time-19691231/music-of-my-mind-stevie-wonder-19691231|url-status=dead|archive-date=September 2, 2011|title=500 Greatest Albums of All Time {{!}} Music of My Mind ranked no. 284|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref>  In 2004, on their "[[The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time|500 Greatest Songs of All Time]]" list, ''Rolling Stone'' included "[[Superstition (song)|Superstition]]" at number 74 (promoted to number 12 for the 2020 edition), "[[Living for the City]]" at number 104, "[[Higher Ground (Stevie Wonder song)|Higher Ground]]" at number 261 (promoted to number 113 for the 2020 edition), and "[[You Are the Sunshine of My Life]]" at number 281 (promoted to number 183 for the 2020 edition);<ref>{{cite web|url=http://spotirama.blogspot.com/2015/04/rolling-stone-500-greatest-songs-of-all.html|title=Rolling Stone: 500 Greatest Songs of All-Time (compiled in 2004)|date=April 30, 2015|publisher=Sportirama|access-date=August 4, 2021}}</ref> additionally, "[[Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours|Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)]]" was included in the 2020 edition at number 203.

Wonder is also noted for his work as an activist for political causes, including his 1980 campaign to make [[Martin Luther King Jr.]]'s birthday a [[Martin Luther King Jr. Day|federal holiday]] in the United States.<ref>{{cite book|last=Perone|first=James E.|url=https://archive.org/details/soundofsteviewon00pero/page/83|title=The Sound of Stevie Wonder: His Words and Music|publisher=Greenwood Publishing|year=2006|isbn=0-275-98723-X|page=[https://archive.org/details/soundofsteviewon00pero/page/83 83]}}</ref> On October 21, 1974, with the [[Boston desegregation busing crisis|Boston busing desegregation]] underway, Wonder spoke and led students in song at a lounge at the [[University of Massachusetts Boston]] the day after he performed at the [[Boston Garden]].<ref>{{cite book|last=Feldberg|first=Michael|title=UMass Boston at 50: A Fiftieth-Anniversary History of the University of Massachusetts Boston|publisher=[[University of Massachusetts Press]]|place=[[Amherst, Massachusetts|Amherst, MA]]|year=2015|page=115|isbn=978-1625341693}}</ref>

== Personal life ==
=== Marriages and children ===
Wonder has been married three times. He was married to Motown singer-songwriter and frequent collaborator [[Syreeta Wright]] from 1970 until their amicable divorce in 1972, after which their musical collaboration continued (she sang on 1995's ''Conversation Peace'').<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/news/2004/jul/13/guardianobituaries.artsobituaries1|title=Obituary: Syreeta|newspaper=The Guardian|first=Dave|last=Laing|author-link=Dave Laing|date=July 13, 2004}}</ref> From 2001 until 2012, he was married to fashion designer Kai Millard.<ref name="Today-2005">{{cite news |url=https://www.today.com/popculture/stevie-wonders-birthday-present-baby-boy-wbna8120126 |title=Stevie Wonder's birthday present: a baby boy |access-date=June 4, 2007 |agency=Associated Press |date=June 15, 2005 |publisher=Today.com}}</ref> In October 2009, Wonder and Millard separated; Wonder filed for divorce in August 2012.<ref>{{cite news|first=Stephen M. |last=Silverman|url=https://people.com/celebrity/stevie-wonder-divorces-kai-morris/|title=Stevie Wonder Files for Divorce|date=August 3, 2012|work=[[People (magazine)|People]]}}</ref> In 2017, he married Tomeeka Bracy.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://people.com/music/stevie-wonder-weds-tomeeka-robyn-bracy/ |title=Stevie Wonder and Tomeeka Robyn Bracy Are Married — and Babyface Performed at the Lavish Wedding |first= Karen|last=Mizoguchi |author2= Melody Chiu|work=People|date=July 19, 2017 |language=en |access-date=May 9, 2022}}</ref>

Wonder has nine children with five women.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Ulster|first1=Laurie|title=The Wonder of Stevie Wonder: 7 Fun Facts|url=http://www.biography.com/news/stevie-wonder-biography-facts|access-date=December 7, 2015|publisher=Biography.com|date=February 15, 2015}}</ref><ref name=People2024>{{cite magazine|url=https://people.com/all-about-stevie-wonder-kids-7501918#:~:text=Wonder%20first%20became%20a%20father,%2C%20Keita%2C%20before%20they%20split.|title=Stevie Wonder's 9 Children: All About His Sons and Daughters|magazine=People|first=Nicole|last=Briese|date=May 13, 2024|access-date=May 23, 2024}}</ref> Two were born to Yolanda Simmons, whom Wonder met when she applied for a job as secretary for his publishing company.<ref name=woman>''[[Woman's Own]]'' magazine, July 1978, pp. 65–68. Book extract from ''Stevie Wonder'' by Constanza Elsner, published by Everest.</ref> Simmons gave birth to Wonder's daughter Aisha Morris on February 2, 1975.<ref>{{cite web|author=Jacqueline |url=http://www.bvblackspin.com/2009/07/08/dr-boyce-did-stevie-wonders-daughter-attempt-suicide/ |title=Dr. Boyce: Did Stevie Wonder's Daughter Attempt Suicide? |publisher=BV Black Spin |date=July 8, 2009 |access-date=September 13, 2011}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.superseventies.com/sw_iwish.html |title='I Wish' – Stevie Wonder |via=Superseventies.com|first=Thomas|last=Ryan|work=American Hit Radio|publisher=Prima Entertainment|date=1996 |access-date=September 13, 2011}}</ref> After Aisha was born, Wonder said "she was the one thing that I needed in my life and in my music for a long time".<ref name="woman" /> Aisha was the inspiration for Wonder's hit single "Isn't She Lovely?" She is now a singer who has toured with her father and accompanied him on recordings, including his 2005 album ''[[A Time to Love (album)|A Time to Love]]''. Wonder and Simmons also had a son, Keita, in 1977.<ref name=CNN>{{cite news|title=Stevie Wonder Fast Facts|url=http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/07/us/stevie-wonder-fast-facts/|access-date=December 7, 2015|publisher=CNN|date=May 11, 2015}}</ref>

In 1983, Wonder had a son named Mumtaz Morris with Melody McCulley.<ref>{{cite web|title=Stevie Wonder|url=https://www.biography.com/musician/stevie-wonder|access-date=May 22, 2019|work=Biography.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://lasvegasblackimage.com/2010/06/mumtaz-morris/ |title=Mumtaz Morris|work=Las Vegas Black Image|last=Bailey-Tureaud|first=Kimberly|date=June 17, 2010}}</ref> Wonder also has a daughter, Sophia, and a son, Kwame, with a woman whose identity has not been publicly disclosed.<ref name=CNN /> Wonder has two sons with second wife Kai Millard Morris. The elder is named Kailand, and he occasionally performs as a drummer on stage with his father.<ref name=People2024 /> The younger son, Mandla Kadjay Carl Stevland Morris, was born on May 13, 2005 (his father's 55th birthday).<ref name="Today-2005" />

Wonder's ninth child, his second with Tomeeka Robyn Bracy, was born in December 2014, amid rumors that he would be the father to triplets.<ref name=Marquina>{{cite magazine|first=Sierra |last=Marquina|url=http://www.usmagazine.com/celebrity-moms/news/stevie-wonder-welcomes-ninth-child-baby-girl-named-nia-20141712 |title=Stevie Wonder, 64, Welcomes Ninth Child, a Baby Girl Named Nia!|magazine=[[US Magazine]]|date=December 17, 2014}}</ref> This turned out not to be the case, and the couple named their new daughter Nia,<ref>{{cite web| url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/people/2014/11/05/stevie-wonder-dad-baby-expecting-triplets-girlfriend/18531143/ |title=Stevie Wonder has ninth child on the way |first=Ann |last=Oldenburg|work=USA Today |date=November 5, 2014 |access-date=November 7, 2014}}</ref> meaning "purpose" (one of the seven principles of [[Kwanzaa]]).<ref name=Marquina />

=== Family and health ===
On May 31, 2006, Wonder's mother [[Lula Mae Hardaway]] died in Los Angeles at the age of 76.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/06/09/arts/music/09hardaway.html| title= Lula Mae Hardaway, 76, Stevie Wonder's Mother, Dies
|agency=Associated Press|date=June 9, 2006|work=The New York Times}}</ref> During his September 8, 2008, UK concert in Birmingham, he spoke of his decision to begin touring again following his loss: "I want to take all the pain that I feel and celebrate and turn it around."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/mobile/entertainment/7605715.stm |title=Wonderful return for Stevie fans |first=Ian |last=Youngs|work=BBC News |date=September 9, 2008 |access-date=February 28, 2012}}</ref>

At a concert in London's [[Hyde Park, London|Hyde Park]] on July 6, 2019, Wonder announced that he would be undergoing a [[kidney transplant]] in September.<ref name="Snapes-2019" />

=== Religion and politics ===
Wonder has been a longtime [[Baptist]] affiliated with [[black church]]es.<ref>{{cite web |date=March 30, 2015 |title=Stevie Wonder surprises Minneapolis Baptist church |url=http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/story/entertainment/music/2015/03/30/stevie-wonder-minneapolis-church/70670810/ |work=Montgomery Advertiser |agency=Associated Press}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=HeyitsDeMarco |date=March 31, 2013 |title=Stevie Wonder visits Elizabeth Baptist Church |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHvzwwpX_mk |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/nHvzwwpX_mk |archive-date=December 11, 2021 |via=YouTube}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Gigliotti |first1=Jim |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IwyICwAAQBAJ&pg=PA20 |title=Who Is Stevie Wonder? |date=October 18, 2016 |publisher=[[Grosset & Dunlap]]/[[Penguin Random House]] |isbn=9780515156423 |via=Google Books}}</ref> He was introduced to [[Transcendental Meditation technique|Transcendental Meditation]] through his marriage to Syreeta Wright.<ref>{{cite news|title=Stevie Wonder can still find sunshine in his life|newspaper=[[Toronto Star]]|date=May 23, 1989|page=B2|quote=His marriage to former Motown secretary Syreeta Wright had introduced him to transcendental meditation, which Wright was qualified to teach.}}</ref> Consistent with that belief system, Wonder became vegetarian, and later a [[vegan]], singing about it in October 2015 on ''[[The Late Late Show with James Corden]]'' during the show's "[[Carpool Karaoke]]" segment.<ref>Chambers, Taylor (October 13, 2015), [http://www.onegreenplanet.org/news/stevie-wonder-vegan/ "Stevie Wonder Went Vegan and He Loves it So Much He Sings About it!"] (VIDEO), One Green Planet. Retrieved October 16, 2015.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://baltimore.cbslocal.com/2014/04/16/music-icon-stevie-wonder-visits-local-vegan-restaurant/|title=Music Icon Stevie Wonder Visits Local Vegan Restaurant|first=Linh |last=Bui|publisher= CBS Baltimore (online)|date= April 16, 2014|access-date= October 16, 2015}}</ref><ref>Bowie, Richard (October 15, 2015), [http://vegnews.com/articles/page.do?pageId=7091&catId=1 "Stevie Wonder Creates Impromptu Song About Going Vegan"], ''VegNews''. Retrieved October 16, 2015.</ref>

Wonder joined [[Twitter]] on April 4, 2018, and his first tweet was a five-minute video honoring [[Martin Luther King Jr.]] Dozens of famous personalities were rounded up in the video, which was titled "The Dream Still Lives". Each person involved shared their dream, calling back to King's [[I Have a Dream|popular speech in 1963]]. Wonder's first tweet took the Internet by storm, and he also encouraged viewers to share their own videos about their dreams with the [[hashtag]] #DreamStillLives.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.mtv.com/news/3072443/stevie-wonder-mlk-celebrity-video-tribute/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180406163441/http://www.mtv.com/news/3072443/stevie-wonder-mlk-celebrity-video-tribute/|url-status=dead|archive-date=April 6, 2018|title=Harry Styles, Katy Perry, And More Celebs Come Together In New MLK Video Tribute|first=Madeline|last=Roth|work=MTV News|date=April 4, 2018|access-date=April 6, 2018|language=en}}</ref>

On August 21, 2024, Wonder performed "[[Higher Ground (Stevie Wonder song)|Higher Ground]]" at the [[2024 Democratic National Convention]], endorsing [[Vice President Kamala Harris]] in the [[2024 United States presidential election]]. Wonder also briefly spoke at the convention, saying: “This is a moment to tell your children where you were and what you did. When we stand between history's pain and tomorrow's promises, we must choose courage over complacency."<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-08-21 |title=John Legend and Stevie Wonder set to perform at DNC Day 3 |url=https://6abc.com/post/john-legend-stevie-among-musical-performances-dnc-day-3-chicago/15214696/ |access-date=2024-08-22 |website=6abc Philadelphia |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=2024-08-21 |title=What time is Stevie Wonder performing at the DNC? Here's when to watch |url=https://www.nbcchicago.com/dnc-chicago-2024/what-time-stevie-wonder-performing-dnc-heres-when-watch/3528540/ |access-date=2024-08-22 |website=NBC Chicago |language=en-US}}</ref>

=== Ghanaian citizenship ===
On May 13, 2024, Wonder's 74th birthday, Ghana's President [[Nana Akufo-Addo]] conferred Ghanaian citizenship on him.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-05-13 |title=American singer, Stevie Wonder, granted Ghanaian citizenship |first=Sammi|last=Wiafe|url=https://citinewsroom.com/2024/05/american-singer-stevie-wonder-granted-ghanaian-citizenship/ |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=Citinewsroom - Comprehensive News in Ghana |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last= |last2= |title=President Akufo-Addo confers Ghanaian citizenship on Stevie Wonder |url=https://www.mint.gov.gh/president-akufo-addo-confers-ghanaian-citizenship-on-stevie-wonder/|date=13 May 2024 |access-date=2024-05-13 |website=Ministry of the Interior │ Republic of Ghana |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.graphic.com.gh/entertainment/showbiz-news/stevie-wonder-is-officially-a-ghanaian-citizen.html|title=VIDEO: Stevie Wonder is officially a Ghanaian citizen|website=Graphic Online|first=Kweku|last=Zurek|date=May 13, 2024|access-date=May 14, 2024}}</ref> Wonder took the Oath of Allegiance and received his Certificate of Citizenship at [[Jubilee House]] in [[Accra]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/entertainment/American-music-icon-Stevie-Wonder-arrives-in-Ghana-receives-citizenship-1930583#:~:text=Legendary%20American%20singer%2Dsongwriter%20Stevie,coincided%20with%20Wonder's%2074th%20birthday.|title=American music icon Stevie Wonder arrives in Ghana, receives citizenship|website=[[GhanaWeb]]|date=May 13, 2024|access-date=May 13, 2024}}</ref>

== Awards and recognition ==
=== Grammy Awards ===
Wonder has won 25 [[Grammy Awards]],<ref name=Grammy /> as well as a [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award]] in 1996.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/Recording_Academy/Awards/Lifetime_Awards/ |title=Lifetime Achievement Award |access-date=October 30, 2008 |publisher=Grammy.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070213065421/http://www.grammy.com/Recording_Academy/Awards/Lifetime_Awards/ |archive-date=February 13, 2007 }}</ref> He is one of only four [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|artists and groups who have won the Grammy for Album of the Year three times as the main credited artist]], along with [[Frank Sinatra]], [[Paul Simon]], and [[Taylor Swift]]. Wonder is the only artist to have won the award with three consecutive album releases.

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="min-width:60em"
! colspan=3 | Grammy Awards
|-
!Year || Award || Title
|-
|1973 || [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Song|Best Rhythm & Blues Song]] || "Superstition"
|-
|1973 || [[Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male]] || "Superstition"
|-
|1973 || [[Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance|Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male]] || "You Are the Sunshine of My Life"
|-
|1973 || [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]] || ''Innervisions''
|-
|1974 || Best Rhythm & Blues Song || "Living for the City"
|-
|1974 || Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|| "Boogie on Reggae Woman"
|-
|1974 || Best Male Pop Vocal Performance|| ''Fulfillingness' First Finale''
|-
|1974 || [[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]] || ''Fulfillingness' First Finale''
|-
|1976 || Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|| "I Wish"
|-
|1976 || Best Male Pop Vocal Performance|| ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.grammy.com/GRAMMY_Awards/Winners/Results.aspx?title=&winner=stevie+wonder&year=0&genreID=0 |title=Grammy Awards Website |publisher=Grammy.com |date=February 8, 2009 |access-date=September 18, 2010}}</ref>
|-
|1976 || [[Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical|Best Producer of the Year]]* || N/A
|-
|1976 || Album of the Year || ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''
|-
|1985 || Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|| ''In Square Circle''
|-
|1986 || [[Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal|Best Pop Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocal]]<br />''(awarded to [[Dionne Warwick]], [[Elton John]], [[Gladys Knight]], and Wonder)'' || "That's What Friends Are For"
|-
|1995 || Best Rhythm & Blues Song || "For Your Love"
|-
|1995 || Best Male R&B Vocal Performance || "For Your Love"
|-
|1998 || [[Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s)|Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)]]<br />''(awarded to Herbie Hancock, Robert Sadin, and Wonder)''|| "[[St. Louis Blues]]"
|-
|1998 || Best Male R&B Vocal Performance || "St. Louis Blues"
|-
|2002 || [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals|Best R&B Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocals]]<br />''(awarded to Wonder and [[Take 6]])''|| "Love's in Need of Love Today"
|-
|2005 || Best Male Pop Vocal Performance || "[[From the Bottom of My Heart (Stevie Wonder song)|From the Bottom of My Heart]]"
|-
|2005 || Best R&B Performance by a Duo Or Group With Vocals<br />''(awarded to [[Beyoncé Knowles|Beyoncé]] and Wonder)''|| "[[So Amazing (song)|So Amazing]]"
|-
|2006 || Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals ''(awarded to [[Tony Bennett]] and Wonder)'' || "For Once in My Life"
|-
|colspan=3 style="font-size:88%" |
* From 1965 to 1980 a self-produced artist received one Grammy Award as an artist and an additional one as a producer in the Record of the Year and Album of the Year categories
|}

{{awards table}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[9th Annual Grammy Awards|1967]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[Uptight (Everything's Alright)|Uptight]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance|Best Rhythm & Blues Recording]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|Best Rhythm & Blues Solo Vocal Performance, Male or Female]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[11th Annual Grammy Awards|1969]]
| "[[For Once in My Life]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|Best Rhythm & Blues Vocal Performance, Male]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[13th Annual Grammy Awards|1971]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[Signed, Sealed, Delivered I'm Yours]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Song|Best Rhythm & Blues Song]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|[[Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[14th Annual Grammy Awards|1972]]
| "[[We Can Work It Out#Stevie Wonder version|We Can Work It Out]]"
| {{nom}}
|-
|rowspan="6"|[[16th Annual Grammy Awards|1974]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[Superstition (song)|Superstition]]"
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Rhythm & Blues Song
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|"[[You Are the Sunshine of My Life]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance|Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Record of the Year|Record of the Year]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Song of the Year|Song of the Year]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| ''[[Innervisions]]''
| rowspan="2"|[[Grammy Award for Album of the Year|Album of the Year]]
| {{won}}
|-
|rowspan="6"|[[17th Annual Grammy Awards|1975]]
| rowspan="2"|''[[Fulfillingness' First Finale]]''
|{{won}}
|-
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
| {{won}}
|-
| "[[Boogie On Reggae Woman]]"
| Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
| {{won}}
|-
| "[[Living for the City]]"
| rowspan="2"|Best Rhythm & Blues Song
| {{won}}
|-
| "[[Tell Me Something Good]]"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|Stevie Wonder
| rowspan="2"|[[Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical|Best Producer of the Year]]
| {{nom}}
|-
|rowspan="7"|[[19th Annual Grammy Awards|1977]]
|{{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|"Contusion"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance|Best Pop Instrumental Performance]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Composition|Best Instrumental Composition]]
|{{nom}}
|-
| "Have a Talk with God"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Inspirational Performance|Best Inspirational Performance]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]''
| Album of the Year
|{{won}}
|-
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
|{{won}}
|-
| "[[I Wish (Stevie Wonder song)|I Wish]]"
| rowspan="2"|Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
| {{won}}
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[23rd Annual Grammy Awards|1981]]
| "[[Master Blaster (Jammin')]]"
|{{nom}}
|-
| ''[[Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"]]''
| [[Grammy Award for Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media|Best Album of Original Score Written for a Motion Picture or a Television Special]]
|{{nom}}
|-
| Stevie Wonder
| [[Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical|Producer of the Year (Non-Classical)]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| "[[Let's Get Serious (song)|Let's Get Serious]]"
| rowspan="3"|Best Rhythm & Blues Song
|{{nom}}
|-
|rowspan="7"|[[25th Annual Grammy Awards|1983]]
| "[[That Girl (Stevie Wonder song)|That Girl]]"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|"[[Do I Do]]"
|{{nom}}
|-
| Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
|{{nom}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals|Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)]]
|{{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|"[[Ebony and Ivory]]"
| Record of the Year
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals|Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| "[[Tug of War (Paul McCartney album)#Track listing|What's That You're Doing]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals|Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal]]
|{{nom}}
|-
|rowspan="4"|[[27th Annual Grammy Awards|1985]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[I Just Called to Say I Love You]]"
| Song of the Year
|{{nom}}
|-
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
|{{nom}}
|-
| "[[I Just Called to Say I Love You]] (Instrumental)"
| Best Pop Instrumental Performance
|{{nom}}
|-
| ''[[The Woman in Red (soundtrack)|The Woman in Red]]''
| rowspan="2"|Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
|{{nom}}
|-
|rowspan="2"|[[28th Annual Grammy Awards|1986]]
| ''[[In Square Circle]]''
|{{won}}
|-
| "[[Part-Time Lover]]"
| Best Pop Vocal Performance, Male
|{{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[29th Annual Grammy Awards|1987]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[That's What Friends Are For#Dionne Warwick version|That's What Friends Are For]]"
| Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
| {{won}}
|-
| Record of the Year
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[30th Annual Grammy Awards|1988]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[Skeletons (Stevie Wonder song)|Skeletons]]"
| Best Rhythm & Blues Song
|{{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[31st Annual Grammy Awards|1989]]
| ''[[Characters (Stevie Wonder album)|Characters]]''
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|[[34th Annual Grammy Awards|1992]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[Gotta Have You (Stevie Wonder song)|Gotta Have You]]"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media|Best Song Written Specifically for a Motion Picture or for Television]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| "Jungle Fever"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[38th Annual Grammy Awards|1996]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[For Your Love (Stevie Wonder song)|For Your Love]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance|Best Male R&B Vocal Performance]]
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Rhythm & Blues Song
| {{won}}
|-
| [[39th Annual Grammy Awards|1997]]
| "[[The Adventures of Pinocchio (1996 film)#Soundtrack|Kiss Lonely Goodbye (Harmonica with Orchestra)]]"
| Best Pop Instrumental Performance
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[40th Annual Grammy Awards|1998]]
| rowspan="2"|"[[How Come, How Long]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Music Video|Best Short Form Music Video]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals|Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="3"|[[41st Annual Grammy Awards|1999]]
| "How Come, How Long" (Live)
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|"[[St. Louis Blues]]"
| Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
| {{won}}
|-
| Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocal(s)
| {{won}}
|-
| rowspan="2"|[[45th Annual Grammy Awards|2003]]
| "Love's in Need of Love Today"
| Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal
| {{won}}
|-
| "Christmas Song"
| rowspan="3"|Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[47th Annual Grammy Awards|2005]]
| "[[Moon River]]"
| {{nom}}
|-
| rowspan="6"|[[48th Annual Grammy Awards|2006]]
| "A Time to Love"
| {{nom}}
|-
| ''[[A Time to Love (album)|A Time to Love]]''
| [[Grammy Award for Best R&B Album|Best R&B Album]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| "[[So What the Fuss]]"
| Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
| {{nom}}
|-
| "How Will I Know"
| rowspan="2"|Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
| {{nom}}
|-
| "So Amazing"
| {{won}}
|-
| "[[From the Bottom of My Heart (Stevie Wonder song)|From the Bottom of My Heart]]"
| [[Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance|Best Male Pop Vocal Performance]]
| {{won}}
|-
| [[49th Annual Grammy Awards|2007]]
| "[[For Once in My Life]]"
| Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals
| {{won}}
|-
| [[51st Annual Grammy Awards|2009]]
| "Never Give You Up"
| Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[52nd Annual Grammy Awards|2010]]
| "[[All About the Love Again]]"
| Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
| {{nom}}
{{end}}

=== Other awards and recognition ===
Wonder has been given a range of awards, both for his music and for his civil rights work, including a Lifetime Achievement Award from the [[National Civil Rights Museum]],<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.nme.com/news/music/stevie-wonder-49-1348194|title=Stevie Wonder receives civil rights award|magazine=[[NME]]|date=October 20, 2006|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref> being named one of the [[United Nations Messengers of Peace]], and earning a [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]] from President [[Barack Obama]] in 2014, presented at a ceremony in the [[White House]] on November 24 that year.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://eu.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/brian-mccollum/2014/11/10/stevie-wonder-presidential-medal/18826411/#:~:text=%22Stevie%20Wonder%20is%20one%20of,it%20was%20established%20in%201960.|title=Stevie Wonder to receive Presidential Medal of Freedom|first=Brian|last=McCollum|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|date=November 10, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wRnINjsErUU|title=Stevie Wonder Presented Medal Of Freedom|date=November 25, 2014|via=YouTube}}</ref>

In December 2016, the [[Detroit|City of Detroit]] recognized Wonder's legacy by renaming a portion of his childhood street, Milwaukee Avenue West, between Woodward Avenue and Brush Street, as "Stevie Wonder Avenue".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://eu.detroitnews.com/story/news/local/detroit-city/2016/12/16/milwaukee-avenue-renamed-stevie-wonder-avenue/95526026/|title=Milwaukee Avenue to be renamed Stevie Wonder Avenue|newspaper=[[The Detroit News]]|first=Stephanie|last=Steinberg|date=December 16, 2016}}</ref> He was also awarded an honorary key to the city, presented by Mayor [[Mike Duggan]] on the day of the unveiling of the new street sign.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/2016/12/21/stevie-wonder-avenue-unveiling-ceremony-detroit/95697552/|title=Isn't it lovely? Stevie Wonder gets a street in Detroit|first=Brian |last=McCollum|work=Detroit Free Press|date=December 22, 2016|access-date=May 28, 2018}}</ref>

In 2023, Wonder was awarded the [[Freedom of the City]] of [[Newcastle upon Tyne]], England, conferred in recognition of his campaign to establish a U.S. national holiday for the birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr., who in November 1967 had received an honorary degree from [[Newcastle University]].<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/23357945.stevie-wonder-given-newcastle-honour-luther-king-link/|title=Stevie Wonder given Newcastle honour for Luther King link|newspaper=[[The Northern Echo]]|date=March 2, 2023|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref>

In May 2024, Wonder was a recipient (alongside [[Misty Copeland]]) of the [[George Peabody Medal|George Peabody Medal for Outstanding Contributions to Music and Dance in America]], the highest honor awarded by the [[Peabody Institute]] of [[Johns Hopkins University]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hub.jhu.edu/2024/05/02/peabody-commencement-stevie-wonder-misty-copeland/|title=Commencement 2024 {{!}} Stevie Wonder and Misty Copeland to Speak at Peabody Conservatory's 2024 Graduation Ceremonies|website=HUN|publisher=Johns Hopkins University|date=May 2, 2024|access-date=July 16, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/stevie-wonder-misty-copeland-george-peabody-medal-1235671657/|title=Stevie Wonder, Misty Copeland Received George Peabody Medals for Outstanding Contributions to Music & Dance in America|first=Paul|last=Grein|magazine=Billboard|date=May 5, 2024|access-date=July 16, 2024}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable collapsible collapsed" style="min-width:60em"
! Awards and recognition
|-
|
* 1983: inducted to the [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]].<ref name="SongwritersHOF"/>
* 1984: received an [[Academy Award for Best Song]] for "[[I Just Called to Say I Love You]]" from the movie ''[[The Woman in Red (1984 film)|The Woman in Red]]''.<ref>[http://aaspeechesdb.oscars.org/link/057-16/ Academy Awards Acceptance Speech Database]. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved May 8, 2022.</ref>
* 1989: inducted to the [[Rock and Roll Hall of Fame]].<ref name="RockHOF"/>
* 1994: Star on the [[Hollywood Walk of Fame]].<ref>[https://walkoffame.com/stevie-wonder/ "Stevie Wonder"] at Hollywood Walk of Fame.</ref>
* 1999: received the [[Polar Music Prize]]<ref name=PolarMusic/> and [[Kennedy Center Honors]].<ref>[//www.kennedy-center.org/programs/specialevents/honors/history/home.html The Kennedy Center – Past Honorees]. Retrieved on October 11, 2008.</ref>
* 2002: received the [[UCLA Spring Sing#The George and Ira Gershwin Award|George and Ira Gershwin Lifetime Achievement Award]] at UCLA's [[UCLA Spring Sing|Spring Sing]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.uclalumni.net/calendarevents/springsing/Gershwin/winners.cfm |title=Gershwin Award Winners |access-date=October 12, 2008 |work=UCLAlumni.net |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110817021611/http://www.uclalumni.net/calendarevents/springsing/Gershwin/winners.cfm |archive-date=August 17, 2011 }}</ref> The same year, Wonder received the [[Sammy Cahn]] Lifetime Achievement Award from the [[Songwriters Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/ceremony/awards/C3003 |title=Sammy Cahn Lifetime Achievement Award |access-date=October 30, 2008 |work=Songwriter's Hall of Fame |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081014103654/http://www.songwritershalloffame.org/ceremony/awards/C3003 |archive-date=October 14, 2008 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
* 2004: received the [[Billboard Century Award]].<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/yearend/2006/century/2004.jsp |title=Stevie Wonder Billboard's 2004 Century Award Honoree |access-date=October 12, 2008|first= Gail |last= Mitchell |magazine=Billboard |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080510024830/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/yearend/2006/century/2004.jsp |archive-date = May 10, 2008}}</ref> Also in 2004, ''[[Rolling Stone]]'' ranked him No. 15 on their list of the [//www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5939214/the_immortals_the_first_fifty/ 100 Greatest Rock and Roll Artists of All Time].<ref>{{cite magazine| title = The Immortals: The First Fifty| magazine = Rolling Stone| issue=946| url=http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5939214/the_immortals_the_first_fifty| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060316103016/http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5939214/the_immortals_the_first_fifty/| url-status=dead| archive-date=March 16, 2006}}</ref>
* 2006: was inducted, as one of the first inductees, into the [[Michigan Walk of Fame]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.michiganwalkoffame.com/news_details.asp?nid=61 |title=MI Walk of Fame Announces First Inductees |access-date=October 12, 2008 |date=March 14, 2006 |work=Michigan Walk of Fame |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071029124822/http://www.michiganwalkoffame.com/news_details.asp?nid=61 |archive-date=October 29, 2007 }}</ref>
* 2006: Recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award from the [[National Civil Rights Museum]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee|Memphis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/6065174.stm |title=US civil rights honour for Wonder |access-date=May 15, 2024 |date=October 19, 2006|work=[[BBC News]]}}</ref>
* 2008: Ranked at number five on "The Billboard Hot 100 Top All-Time Artists", making him as the third most successful male artist in the history of [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] chart.<ref>{{cite magazine| url=http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/specials/hot100/charts/top100-artists-20.shtml | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080913205920/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/specials/hot100/charts/top100-artists-20.shtml | url-status=dead | archive-date=September 13, 2008 |title=Billboard Hot 100 Chart 50th Anniversary |magazine=Billboard| access-date=October 1, 2009}}</ref>
* February 23, 2009: Recipient of the Library of Congress's second [[Gershwin Prize]] For Popular Song, honored by U.S. President Barack Obama at the [[White House]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/7909915.stm |title=Stevie Wonder honoured by Obama |work=BBC News |date=February 26, 2009 |access-date=February 27, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/02/AR2008090202702.html |title=Stevie Wonder to Receive Gershwin Prize for Song |access-date=December 13, 2008 |date=September 3, 2008|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] | first=J. Freedom |last= du Lac}}</ref>
* 2009: Recipient of the [[Montreal Jazz Festival]] Spirit Award.<ref name=SpiritAward/> This special award underlines a popular artist's extraordinary contribution to the musical world. The Montreal Jazz Festival Spirit Award is in bronze.
* 2009: Named a [[United Nations Messengers of Peace|Messenger of Peace]] by the United Nations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=33118&Cr=disable&Cr1=|title=Singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder designated UN Messenger of Peace|date=December 1, 2009|publisher=United Nations|access-date=April 27, 2010}}</ref>
* March 6, 2010: Appointed a Commander of the [[Order of Arts and Letters]] by French Culture Minister [[Frédéric Mitterrand]]. Wonder had been due to be invested with this honor in 1981, but scheduling problems prevented this from happening. A lifetime achievement award was also given to Wonder on the same day, at France's biggest music awards.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8553585.stm |title=Stevie Wonder receives top French honour |work=BBC News |date=March 7, 2010 |access-date=March 7, 2010}}</ref>
* June 2011: the [[Apollo Theater]] inducted Wonder into the Apollo Legends Hall of Fame.<ref>Allen, Floyd (February 4, 2011), [https://archive.today/20120709021900/http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/108732/20110204/stevie-wonder-apollo-legends-hall-of-fame-apollo-theater-wonder-child.htm "Stevie Wonder joins list of Apollo Legends Hall of Fame recipients"]. ''[http://au.ibtimes.com International Business Times AU]''. Retrieved February 4, 2011.</ref><ref>{{cite news| last=Feeney| first= Michael J. |url= http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/uptown/stevie-inducted-apollo-theater-hall-fame-star-studded-celebration-harlem-article-1.132414 |title= Stevie Wonder inducted into Apollo Theater hall of fame with star-studded celebration in Harlem| newspaper= [[Daily News (New York)|Daily News]] | date= June 17, 2011| access-date= July 22, 2015}}</ref>
* 2012: Recipient of the ''Billboard'' Icon Award.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z8RrY_HZH9c|title=Stevie Wonder & Alicia Keys LIVE @ Billboard Music Awards 2012|magazine=Billboard|via=YouTube|access-date=May 8, 2022}}</ref>
* 2013: Received the Music Makes One Global Ambassador Award from the outstanding music award ceremony of Asia and the World, [[2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards|Mnet Asian Music Awards]].<ref>[//mama.interest.me/history?type=winner&year=2013 "2013 M.net Korean Music Festival Winners list"]. ''MAMA''. Retrieved December 14, 2014.</ref>
* 2014: Recipient of the [[Presidential Medal of Freedom]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/blog/2014/11/10/president-obama-announces-presidential-medal-freedom-recipients |title=President Obama Announces the Presidential Medal of Freedom Recipients |first=Kori|last=Schulman|access-date=November 11, 2014 |via=[[NARA|National Archives]] |work=[[whitehouse.gov]] |date=November 10, 2014}}</ref>
* 2014: Recipient of [[American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers|ASCAP]] Centennial Award.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/stevie-wonder-garth-brooks-billy-joel-ascap-centennial-awards-6319926/|title=Stevie Wonder, Garth Brooks, Billy Joel and More Honored at ASCAP's Centennial Awards Gala|magazine=Billboard|agency=Associated Press|date=November 18, 2014|access-date=May 8, 2022}}</ref>
* 2016: Recipient of honorary key to Detroit, on the occasion of "Stevie Wonder Avenue" on the corner of the city's Milwaukee Avenue and Woodward Avenue.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://michiganchronicle.com/detroit-name-a-street-after-stevie-wonder/|title=Detroit names a street after Stevie Wonder|first=Alisha|last=Dixon|newspaper=[[Michigan Chronicle]]|date=December 28, 2016|access-date=May 5, 2024}}</ref>
* 2021: Founding inductee of the [[Black Music and Entertainment Walk of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ruggieri |first=Melissa |title=Black Music Walk of Fame to honor James Brown, OutKast, Usher and others in Atlanta |url=https://www.ajc.com/life/music-blog/black-music-walk-of-fame-to-honor-james-brown-outkast-usher-and-others-in-atlanta/WREMMPXURZBXZI2VUM4P4NWOHA/ |date= May 5, 2021 |access-date=April 29, 2022 |website=Atlanta Music Scene (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) |language=English}}</ref>
* 2022: Recipient of the inaugural Icon Award from the [[Legal Defense Fund]].<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/awards/stevie-wonder-icon-award-legal-defense-fund-1235065775/|title=Stevie Wonder to Receive Inaugural Icon Award at Legal Defense Fund Event|magazine=Billboard|first=Paul|last=Grein|date=May 2, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.music-news.com/news/UK/148383/Stevie-Wonder-to-receive-Icon-Award-from-Legal-Defence-Fund|title=Stevie Wonder to receive Icon Award from Legal Defence Fund|website=Music News|date=May 4, 2022|access-date=May 15, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.essence.com/news/stevie-wonder-legal-defense-fund/ |title=Stevie Wonder Receives Icon Award From Legendary Justice Organization, Legal Defense Fund|magazine=Essence|first=Malaika|last=Jamali|date= May 13, 2022}}</ref>
* 2023: Awarded the [[Freedom of the City|freedom]] of [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]], UK, "in recognition of his activism for social and political causes".<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.newcastle.gov.uk/citylife-news/council/stevie-wonder-given-freedom-newcastle|title=Stevie Wonder given freedom of Newcastle|publisher=[[Newcastle City Council]]|first=Jack|last=Brooke-Battersby|date=March 2, 2023|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref>
|}

=== Honorary degrees ===
{{Incomplete list|date=December 2017}}

Stevie Wonder has received many honorary degrees in recognition of his music career. These include:

{| class="wikitable"
! State<!--Can be changed to country once foreign degrees are included-->
! Date
! School
! Degree
|-
| Washington, D. C. ||May 14, 1978 || [[Howard University]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/local/1978/05/14/howard-u-confers-honorary-degree-on-stevie-wonder/86b6f66e-339e-49a8-9a89-c9179d135508/|title=Howard U. Confers Honorary Degree On Stevie Wonder|first=Lawrence|last=Feinberg|newspaper=[[Washington Post]]|date=May 14, 1978}}</ref>
|-
| Louisiana || 1986 || [[Xavier University of Louisiana]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://xula.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p16948coll5/id/701/|title=Mr. Stevie Wonder Receiving an Honorary Degree from Xavier University of Louisiana|website=Xavier University of Louisiana {{!}} Digital Archives & Collections|publisher=Xavier University of Louisiana|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref>

|-
| Providence, RI || 1987 || [[Brown University]] || [[Doctor of Music]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.brown.edu/about/administration/corporation/1900s |title= Honorary Degrees: 1900s|website=The Corporation of Brown University|publisher=Brown University|access-date=February 1, 2023}}</ref>
|-
| Alabama || June 2, 1996 || [[University of Alabama at Birmingham]] || [[Doctor of Music]] (DMus.)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.uab.edu/institutionaleffectiveness/images/factbook/sections/15-16_FactsFigures2017_HonoraryDegrees.pdf |title=Honorary UAB Degrees Conferred |access-date=December 12, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171213082011/https://www.uab.edu/institutionaleffectiveness/images/factbook/sections/15-16_FactsFigures2017_HonoraryDegrees.pdf |archive-date=December 13, 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| New Jersey || May 19, 1999 || [[Rutgers University]] || [[Doctor of Fine Arts]] (DFA)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.billboard.com/photos/musicians-with-honorary-degrees-8457783/|title=20 Musicians With Honorary Degrees|author=Billboard Staff|magazine=Billboard|date=May 31, 2018|access-date=November 28, 2022}}</ref>
|-
| Ohio || April 30, 2010 || [[Oberlin College]] || [[Doctor of Music]] (DMus.)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.allaboutjazz.com/news/stevie-wonder-bill-and-camille-cosby-to-help-oberlin-dedicate-and-celebrate-the-grand-opening-of-the-litoff-building-april-30-may-1/|title=Stevie Wonder, Bill And Camille Cosby To Help Oberlin Dedicate And Celebrate The Grand Opening Of The Litoff Building April 30 – May 1|website=[[AllAboutJazz]]|first=Michael|last=Ricci|date=March 10, 2010|access-date=May 7, 2022}}</ref>
|-
| Louisiana || May 12, 2011 || [[Tulane University]] || [[Doctor of Fine Arts]] (DFA)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://news.tulane.edu/node/44661/pdf|title=Idealism and Wonder Reign at Commencement|date=May 12, 2011|website=News|first=Nick|last=Marinello|publisher=Tulane University|access-date=May 7, 2022|archive-date=April 27, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230427191914/https://news.tulane.edu/node/44661/pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| Illinois || 2014 || [[Northwestern University]] || [[Doctor of Arts]] (D.A.)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.northwestern.edu/provost/about/committees/honorary-degrees/honorary-degree-recipients.html|title=Honorary Degrees {{!}} Recipients|website=Office of the Provost|publisher=Northwestern University|date=2014|access-date=May 16, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://abc7chicago.com/nu-graduation-northwestern-stevie-wonder-cloris-leachman/127759/|title=Stevie Wonder receives honorary degree at NU graduation|website=ABC7|date=June 21, 2014|access-date=May 16, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| Georgia || May 15, 2016 || [[Spelman College]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://theburtonwire.com/stevie-wonder-icon-receives-honorary-degree-from-spelman/|title=Stevie Wonder: Icon Receives Honorary Degree from Spelman|website=The Burton Wire|first=Christopher A. |last=Daniel|date=May 23, 2016|access-date=July 16, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| Connecticut || May 22, 2017 || [[Yale University]] || [[Doctor of Music]] (DMus.)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.courant.com/education/hc-yale-commencement-20170521-story.html|title=Yale Honors Stevie Wonder, John Kerry, John Lewis At Commencement|first=Kathleen|last=Megan|work=[[The Hartford Courant]]|date=May 22, 2017}}</ref>
|-
| Michigan || May 7, 2022 || [[Wayne State University]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://commencement.wayne.edu/ceremony-iii|title=Ceremony III – May 7, 2022 {{!}} Stevland Hardaway Morris|website=May 2022 Commencement|publisher=Wayne State University|date=May 7, 2022|access-date=May 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://eu.freep.com/story/entertainment/music/brian-mccollum/2022/05/07/stevie-wonder-honorary-doctorate-wayne-state-university/9687331002/|title=Stevie Wonder gets honorary doctorate at Wayne State University commencement|first=Brian|last=McCollum|website=[[Detroit Free Press]]|date=May 7, 2022}}</ref>
|-
| New York || May 20, 2023 || [[Fordham University]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://abc7ny.com/stevie-wonder-receives-honorary-degree-fordham-university-commencement/13274996/#:~:text=NEW%20YORK%20(WABC)%20%2D%2D%20From,also%20addressed%20the%20graduating%20class.|title=Stevie Wonder receives honorary doctorate from Fordham University|website=ABC7|date=May 20, 2023|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws7DQJ7J26o|title=Stevie Wonder receives honorary doctorate from Fordham University|publisher=WBNS 10TV|via=YouTube|date=May 20, 2023|access-date=May 15, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| Missouri || May 5, 2024 || [[Lincoln University (Missouri)|Lincoln University]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite news|url=https://seattlemedium.com/lincoln-university-celebrates-2024-commencement-bestows-honorary-doctorate-to-creative-genius-stevie-wonder/|title=Lincoln University Celebrates 2024 Commencement, Bestows Honorary Doctorate To Creative Genius, Stevie Wonder|website=[[The Seattle Medium]]|date=May 14, 2024|access-date=July 16, 2024}}</ref>
|-
| Maryland || May 23, 2024 || [[Johns Hopkins University]] || [[Doctor of Humane Letters]] (DHL)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hub.jhu.edu/2024/05/23/commencement-2024-honorary-degrees/|title=Six Influential Leaders, Artists Receive Johns Hopkins Honorary Degrees|publisher=The Hub (Johns Hopkins University)|date=May 23, 2024}}</ref>
|-
|}

== Discography ==
{{Main|Stevie Wonder discography}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=30em|
* ''[[The Jazz Soul of Little Stevie]]'' (1962)
* ''[[Tribute to Uncle Ray]]'' (1962)
* ''[[With a Song in My Heart (Stevie Wonder album)|With a Song in My Heart]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Stevie at the Beach]]'' (1964)
* ''[[Up-Tight]]'' (1966)
* ''[[Down to Earth (Stevie Wonder album)|Down to Earth]]'' (1966)
* ''[[I Was Made to Love Her (album)|I Was Made to Love Her]]'' (1967)
* ''[[Someday at Christmas]]'' (1967)
* ''[[Eivets Rednow]]'' (1968)
* ''[[For Once in My Life (Stevie Wonder album)|For Once in My Life]]'' (1968)
* ''[[My Cherie Amour (album)|My Cherie Amour]]'' (1969)
* ''[[Signed, Sealed & Delivered]]'' (1970)
* ''[[Where I'm Coming From]]'' (1971)
* ''[[Music of My Mind]]'' (1972)
* ''[[Talking Book]]'' (1972)
* ''[[Innervisions]]'' (1973)
* ''[[Fulfillingness' First Finale]]'' (1974)
* ''[[Songs in the Key of Life]]'' (1976)
* ''[[Stevie Wonder's Journey Through "The Secret Life of Plants"]]'' (1979, soundtrack)
* ''[[Hotter than July]]'' (1980)
* ''[[The Woman in Red (soundtrack)|The Woman in Red]]'' (1984, soundtrack)
* ''[[In Square Circle]]'' (1985)
* ''[[Characters (Stevie Wonder album)|Characters]]'' (1987)
* ''[[Jungle Fever (soundtrack)|Jungle Fever]]'' (1991, soundtrack)
* ''[[Conversation Peace]]'' (1995)
* ''[[A Time to Love (album)|A Time to Love]]'' (2005)
}}

== See also ==
* [[List of Billboard Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones|List of ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart achievements and milestones]]
* [[List of artists who reached number one on the Hot 100 (U.S.)]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{sisterlinks|f=no|d=Q714|c=Category:Stevie Wonder|wikt=no|q=Stevie Wonder|m=no|mw=no|b=no|voy=no|n=Category:Stevie Wonder|s=no|v=no}}
* {{official website}}
*{{Allmusic}}
*{{C-SPAN}}
*{{Discogs artist}}
* {{IMDb name}}
*{{MusicBrainz artist}}
* {{NYTtopic|people/w/stevie_wonder}}
*[http://www.namm.org/library/oral-history/stevie-wonder Stevie Wonder Interview] at [[NAMM Oral History Program|NAMM Oral History Collection]] (2016)

{{Stevie Wonder|state=expanded}}
{{Navboxes
|title = Awards for Stevie Wonder
|list =
{{Academy Award Best Original Song}}
{{American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist}}
{{American Music Award of Merit}}
{{Gershwin Prize}}
{{Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song}}
{{Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Original Song}}
{{Grammy Award for Album of the Year 1970s}}
{{Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance}}
{{Grammy Award for Producer of the Year, Non-Classical}}
{{Grammy Award for Best R&B Song}}
{{Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award}}
{{Kennedy Center Honorees 1990s}}
{{MusiCares Person of the Year}}
{{NAACP Image Award – Hall of Fame Award}}
{{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Album}}
{{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Duo or Group}}
{{NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Male Artist}}
{{Polar Music Prize}}
{{1989 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame}}
}}

{{Portalbar|Biography|Pop music|United States}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wonder, Stevie}}
[[Category:Stevie Wonder| ]]
[[Category:1950 births]]
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[[Category:20th-century African-American male singers]]
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[[Category:American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters]]
[[Category:American soul keyboardists]]
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[[Category:Best Original Song Academy Award–winning songwriters]]
[[Category:Blind musicians]]
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[[Category:American child pop musicians]]
[[Category:Commandeurs of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres]]
[[Category:Gershwin Prize recipients]]
[[Category:Ghanaian people of African-American descent]]
[[Category:Golden Globe Award–winning musicians]]
[[Category:Grammy Award winners]]
[[Category:Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award winners]]
[[Category:Kennedy Center honorees]]
[[Category:Motown artists]]
[[Category:Musicians from Detroit]]
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[[Category:Presidential Medal of Freedom recipients]]
[[Category:Progressive soul musicians]]
[[Category:Record producers from Michigan]]
[[Category:Rhythm and blues drummers]]
[[Category:Rhythm and blues pianists]]
[[Category:Singer-songwriters from Michigan]]
[[Category:United Nations Messengers of Peace]]
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