Gordy to give success tips at MSU

[ClassicSoul]

Gordy to give success tips at MSU
April 27, 2006


When you think about it, no one on the Detroit recording scene knew how to "Go Green" better than Motown Records founder Berry Gordy Jr. So it makes great sense for Michigan State University to host "A Conversation With Legendary Motown Founder Berry Gordy." It will be a free, public event from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. May 4 at the Pasant Theatre, Wharton Center for Performing Arts, on Wilson Road at Bogue Street in East Lansing.

The talk is a prelude to Gordy giving the keynote address at the undergraduate convocation 1 p.m. May 5 at MSU's Breslin Center. BG will receive an honorary doctor of humanities degree.

LINK

[Diamond Girl]

Wonder what tips he gave.................................

[fantagurl]

jazzy said:

Wonder what tips he gave.................................

How to cheat people out of their money and how to pit people against each other. Just how to plain old be crooked. :lol:

[Emerald City]

We know Gordy will never come out with it...

[timmy84]

Whatever @ Berry Gordy... I know exactly what he's doing...

[Emerald City]

We all do ...

[timmy84]

fantagurl said:

jazzy said:

Wonder what tips he gave.................................

How to cheat people out of their money and how to pit people against each other. Just how to plain old be crooked.

Berry Gordy Stealing, Plagiarizing and Taking Credit For Someone Else's Stuff 101. Graduates: Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, the other members of the Gordy family, Otis Williams and Mary Wilson

Oops, did I just say that? :teehee:

I'm SO gonna get it.

[timmy84]

I only say Mary because she's taking too much credit for being a "founder" of the Supremes when we all know Florence started it by herself with encouragement from Paul Williams.

[rainymourning]

timmy84 said:

I only say Mary because she's taking too much credit for being a "founder" of the Supremes when we all know Florence started it by herself with encouragement from Paul Williams.

You are correct and lets not forget that often Diana has been credited with being the founder also

[fantagurl]

timmy84 said:

fantagurl said:

How to cheat people out of their money and how to pit people against each other. Just how to plain old be crooked.

Berry Gordy Stealing, Plagiarizing and Taking Credit For Someone Else's Stuff 101. Graduates: Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, the other members of the Gordy family, Otis Williams and Mary Wilson

Oops, did I just say that?

I'm SO gonna get it.

That was a good one!!! :thumbsup: :lol:

[fantagurl]

timmy84 said:

I only say Mary because she's taking too much credit for being a "founder" of the Supremes when we all know Florence started it by herself with encouragement from Paul Williams.

I think Mary gives herself a little too much credit for keeping the group afloat especially after Ross`s departure.

[fantagurl]

rainymourning said:

timmy84 said:

I only say Mary because she's taking too much credit for being a "founder" of the Supremes when we all know Florence started it by herself with encouragement from Paul Williams.

You are correct and lets not forget that often Diana has been credited with being the founder also

Your right (((Rainymourning))) and I never understood why Ross would get any credit for that.

[timmy84]

rainymourning said:

timmy84 said:

I only say Mary because she's taking too much credit for being a "founder" of the Supremes when we all know Florence started it by herself with encouragement from Paul Williams.

You are correct and lets not forget that often Diana has been credited with being the founder also

You're so right about that. :suspect:

[Diamond Girl]

*********************UPDATE*************************

WEB EXTRA: 'Conversation' reveals life of Motown mogul


By Erik Adams
The State News
MSU welcomed Berry Gordy to campus Thursday night for an evening of education, entertainment and conversation with the Motown Records founder.

"Motown is the official soundtrack of our lives," university spokesman Terry Denbow told the audience at the Wharton Center's Pasant Theatre. The audience clearly agreed, applauding the multiple mentions of the label's renowned talent roster and song catalog.

The conversation, which focused on Gordy's success in the music and business world, was moderated by associate professor of music Rodney Whitaker and Michael Mazzeo, associate dean of undergraduate programs for the Eli Broad College of Business.

"(Gordy) is responsible for my pride in being a Detroit musician,"Whitaker said.

Gordy admitted that his success is due to several key values: love, competition, truth, honesty, and passion. He revisited these values several times throughout the conversation, reiterating their importance in both his life and the life of Motown Records.

In spite of his emphasis on these values, Gordy said Motown's success was unplanned.

"Motown was an evolution… I didn't go into it to be mogul," he said. "I was a songwriter, I wrote songs that meant something to me."

One of those songs — "To Be Loved," made famous by Jackie Wilson — was written after Gordy separated from his first wife. After moving in with his sister, he found himself at a piano and the song, as he said, "just came out."

Wilson initially rejected the song, saying he didn't do ballads, but the song eventually won the singer over, the Motown Records founder said.

From the business perspective, Gordy talked about how he brought a "general market" concept to Motown, meaning the label made music for all people, regardless of race, religion or nationality.

"I knew that what black people would like, white people would like," he said of the concept.

Gordy added that people are of great importancein his business model. Motown, he said, had a structure built around people, as opposed to people built around a structure. Hesaid this did not bode well for organization within the company, but it remained well within his values.

"I believe so much in people," he said.


Jazzing up Motown

Th MSU Professors of Jazz, led by Whitaker, opened the evening with the performance of four Motown classics.

The songs were presented in new arrangements, the professors digging into the source material and unearthing the jazz that lies within the Motown soul.

"This just shows how incredible the compositions are," Whitaker said to the audience.

But even the strongest of compositions can prove unrecognizable in a new context. The professors proved this by withholding the title of their third number, saying only that it was originally recorded by Stevie Wonder. When Whitaker asked the audience if anyone recognized the song, not even Gordy responded.

Gasps of realization echoed through the theater when Whitaker revealed the song was "Fingertips," Wonder's first hit single.

Whitaker cited one of Gordy's core values after he noted that some audience members may have been turned off by the new versions of the songs.

"I saw one or two people walk out, while we were playing, because they came to hear a 'Motown' Motown show, but we can't pretend to be that," he said. "(Gordy) said 'truth and honesty,' we're jazz musicians, we're not R & B musicians."


Hitsville MSU

Denbow was pleased with how the event turned out.

"I think it went exactly as we had hoped," he said. "It was educational, entertaining and reflective of what this weekend's all about…anybody who missed it missed an education as well as entertainment," he said.

Whitaker commented on the event's impact as well.

"These types of events are important that we connect to the community and I think that we've done this in how it's been promoted and how it's been written about, and I think it's made people more aware of Motown's legacy," he said.

[rainymourning]

jazzy said:

When Whitaker asked the audience if anyone recognized the song, not even Gordy responded.

Somebody is losing their touch :haha: