Rhythm and Blues Singer, Songwriter. Born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., he had a rough childhood, with his father being abusive. Early in his life, Gaye developed a love of singing. He started to sing with the church choir where his father was the church minister. He also learned to play the organ. In his teen years he was encouraged to pursue a professional performance career. After a stint in the United States Air Force, he formed his own groups before Harvey Fuqua lured him into the latest edition of the singing group, "The Moonglows." Berry Gordy (founder of Motown Records) heard Gaye singing with the group in a Detroit, Michigan club during 1961 and offered him a solo deal — although before recording his own songs, he first served as a session drummer, most notably on The Marvelettes' first hit single, "Please Mr. Postman." Gordy and Gaye later became brother-in-law when Gaye married Anna Gordy (they later divorced), but they often locked horns over artistic direction and creative control. Marvin Gaye went on to be referred to as "Motown's Prince." Among his recordings with Motown were "Stubborn Kind of Fellow," "Pride and Joy," "I Heard it Through the Grapevine," "Ain't Nothing Like The Real Thing," "Ain't No Mountain High Enough," and "Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)." He also recorded with the likes of Mary Wells, Kim Weston, Diana Ross and, most effectively, the James Brown discovery Tammi Terrell, who collapsed in Gaye's arms during a 1967 concert and died three years later of a brain tumor. Gaye convinced the Motown chairman Berry Gordy to let him record the occasional album of standards, and his 1971 song cycle "What's Going On," which is highly regarded as one of the greatest albums of all-time. Subsequent albums include: "Trouble Man" (1972), "Let's Get It On" (1973), "I Want You" (1976), "Live at the London Palladium" (1977) and "Here, My Dear" (1978). In 1977, he married Janis Hunter, and had two children daughter Nona Gaye (who went on to become an actress) and a son Frankie Gaye. This marriage would also end in divorce in February 1981. Gaye left Motown in 1981 and later recorded one of his last hits, "Sexual Healing" with Columbia/CBS Records. In 1987, Gaye was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. In 1996, he was awarded the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2016, he was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. For his contributions to music, he has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, located at 1500 Vine St.