Stevland hardaway judkins biography of williams

Little Stevie Wonder defied those who told him he wouldn’t amount to anything on account of him being “Blind, Black and Broke”, and spent the 60s rising through the ranks of Motown to emerge as one of the most important artists of his generation… Here Vintage Rock presents The Stevie Wonder Story

Words by Mark Lindores

“Say yeah!!” The first words the world heard from Little Stevie Wonder on Fingertips (Part 2) in 1963 may have been the sound of a young boy experiencing pure, unadulterated joy through his music, but this prodigious performer whose talent far exceeded his age was in fact singing for his life.

In truth, even by the standards of the time, Motown’s brightest new star had the darkest backstory.

Blinded At Birth

Lula Mae Hardaway had already suffered serious hardship before she gave birth to her third son Stevland Hardaway Judkins (later changed to Stevland Morris after his mother remarried) on 13 May, 1950.