Stevie Wonder was born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950 in Saginaw, Michigan. third of six children to Calvin Judkins and Lula Mae Hardaway Morris. The product of a premature birth, the blood vessels at the back of his eyes had not yet reached the front, and an aborted growth spurt caused the retinas to detach. The medical term for this condition is known as retinopathy of prematurity. Stevie Wonder took up piano at age seven, and had mastered it by age nine. During his early childhood he was active in his church choir. He also taught himself to play the harmonica and the drums, and had mastered both by age ten. Wonder also learned to play the bass during his early years. In 1961, at the age of eleven, Wonder was discovered singing outside a street corner by a relative of The Miracles’ Ronnie White, who was later introduced to Wonder. White brought Wonder and his mother to Motown Records. Impressed by the young musician, Motown CEO Berry Gordy signed Wonder to Motown’s Tamla label. Stevie Wonder has recorded more than thirty U.S. top ten hits, won twenty-two Grammy Awards, the most ever won by a solo artist in history. His albums have sold more than than 100 million units.
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