Ray Charles Robinson, better known as Ray Charles, was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and one of the most influential and pioneering figures in the history of music.
Often referred to as "The Genius," he was instrumental in shaping modern American music, blending genres like jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, and country into his own unique sound.
Born: September 23, 1930, in Albany, Georgia, USA.
Ray Charles was raised in poverty and faced many hardships. His family moved to Greenville, Florida, when he was an infant.
At the age of 5, he began losing his sight due to glaucoma and became completely blind by age 7.
He attended the Florida School for the Deaf and Blind in St. Augustine, Florida, where he learned to play classical piano and read music in Braille.
His exposure to diverse music there helped shape his early musical interests.
After his mother’s death in 1945, Charles left school at 15 and began traveling across the U.S., performing in various small towns.
He eventually moved to Seattle in 1948, where his music career started to take off.
Initially, he imitated the styles of Nat King Cole and Charles Brown, but he later developed his own sound.
In 1952, Ray Charles signed with Atlantic Records, a turning point in his career.
With Atlantic, he developed his distinctive style, blending gospel music with blues and R&B, which gave birth to what became known as soul music.
His breakthrough came in 1955 with the hit “I Got a Woman”, which became one of his most famous songs.
This was followed by a string of hits, including “Hallelujah I Love Her So” and “Drown in My Own Tears.”
Crossover Success: Ray Charles was one of the first African American artists to gain crossover success, bringing his soul and R&B music to white audiences.
In 1959, he recorded the hit “What’d I Say”, a song that became a major influence on the development of rock and roll.
Country Influence: In 1962, Ray released “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music”, a groundbreaking album that combined his soulful voice with traditional country music. The album was a massive success and helped bridge racial divides in music.
Charles is remembered not just for his musical genius, but also for breaking down racial barriers in music, influencing countless artists across different genres.
His life story was dramatized in the 2004 biopic "Ray", with actor Jamie Foxx portraying him—a performance that won Foxx an Academy Award.
Ray Charles remains one of the most iconic figures in the history of music, known for his extraordinary contributions to the development of soul and the broader musical landscape.
All Support Information from Googles.
Kommentare