Ronald Anthony White (April 5, 1939 – August 26, 1995), usually referred to as Ronnie White, was an American singer, best known as the co-founder of

The Miracles The Miracles (also known as Smokey Robinson and the Miracles from 1965 to 1972) were an American vocal group that was the first successful recording act for Berry Gordy's Motown Records, and one of the most important and most influential group ...

and its only consistent original member. White was also known for bringing

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, s ...

to the attention of

Motown Records Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''mot ...

, and writing several hit singles for the Miracles as well as other artists including

The Temptations The Temptations are an American vocal group from Detroit, Michigan, who released a series of successful singles and albums with Motown Records during the 1960s and 1970s. The group's work with producer Norman Whitfield, beginning with the Top ...

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gay Jr., who also spelled his surname as Gaye (April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984), was an American singer and songwriter. He helped to shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player and later as a solo ar ...

, and

Mary Wells Mary Esther Wells (May 13, 1943 – July 26, 1992) was an American singer, who helped to define the emerging sound of Motown in the early 1960s. Along with The Supremes, The Miracles, The Temptations, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, and the F ...

. White died of leukemia in 1995, at 56 years old. In 2012, White was a posthumous inductee into the

Rock and Roll Hall of Fame The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (RRHOF), sometimes simply referred to as the Rock Hall, is a museum and hall of fame located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States, on the shore of Lake Erie. The museum documents the history of rock music and ...

with The Miracles.

Biography

The Miracles (1962 Tamla publicity photo)

Born in Detroit, White began his friendship with fellow Miracles co-founder

Smokey Robinson William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. (born February 19, 1940) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and former record executive director. He was the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, for which he was also chief ...

when they were kids. The pair started singing together when White was 12 and Robinson was 11. They were soon joined by a third boy, Pete Moore, and in 1955, the trio formed a quintet called The Matadors, with

Bobby Rogers Robert Edward Rogers (February 19, 1940 – March 3, 2013) was an American musician and tenor singer, best known as a member of Motown vocal group the Miracles from 1956 until his death. He was inducted, in 2012, as a member of the Miracles to t ...

and his cousin Emerson "Sonny" Rogers. The group changed its name to The Miracles after Sonny was replaced by his sister Claudette Rogers, of the related group the Matadorettes. The quintet began working with

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), known professionally as Berry Gordy Jr., is a retired American record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record l ...

following a failed audition with

Brunswick Records Brunswick Records is an American record label founded in 1916. History From 1916 Records under the Brunswick label were first produced by the Brunswick-Balke-Collender Company, a company based in Dubuque, Iowa which had been manufacturing prod ...

and soon found fame after signing with Gordy's

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

label under the Tamla subsidiary. During the group's early years, White and Robinson performed several songs as the duo Ron & Bill. White helped Robinson compose several hit singles including The Miracles' " My Girl Has Gone" and " A Fork in the Road" and is known as the co-writer and co-producer of

signature song A signature (; from la, signare, "to sign") is a handwritten (and often stylized) depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. The writer of a ...

, " My Girl" and also co-wrote the same group's " Don't Look Back". He also co-wrote

' "

You Beat Me to the Punch "You Beat Me to the Punch" is a soul single by Motown singer Mary Wells, released on the Motown label in 1962. It was co-written by Smokey Robinson of the Miracles, who was responsible for the majority of hits released by Wells - and another Mirac ...

" and

's "

One More Heartache "One More Heartache" is a 1966 single recorded by Marvin Gaye for Motown Records' Tamla label. The single was written by the team of The Miracles members Bobby Rogers, Marv Tarplin, Pete Moore, Ronnie White and Smokey Robinson and produced by Ro ...

". White would later win awards as a songwriter from the BMI. He also helped to bring a then unknown

to Motown after overhearing him playing with White's cousin; Wonder was signed immediately afterwards. In 1966, The Miracles briefly retired from the road to work as staff songwriters and executives for the label, but returned to perform on the road the following year, in 1967. After Smokey and Claudette Robinson and long-time guitarist Marv Tarplin left the group in 1972, the group carried on with Billy Griffin as their new lead singer, scoring two more hits with Motown including the number-one smash, " Love Machine", before leaving Motown in 1977 for

Columbia Records Columbia Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of Japanese conglomerate Sony. It was founded on January 15, 1889, evolving from the A ...

. The group disbanded in 1978 after Pete Moore opted for retirement and Billy Griffin returned to his solo career. White and Bobby Rogers revived the Miracles in 1980 with Dave Finley and Carl Cotton, calling themselves "The New Miracles". This lasted until 1983, when White faced personal struggles following the death of his first wife, Earlyn Stephenson, who died from breast cancer that year. White announced a retirement shortly afterwards and the Miracles again disbanded. White and Rogers revived the Miracles again in 1993. From his marriage to Earlyn, he fathered two children, daughters Michelle Lynn and Pamela Claudette. He later fathered a son, Ronald Anthony, II. His only granddaughter, Maya Naomi, was born to Pamela after his death. White's first born daughter, Michelle, succumbed to

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia and pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and result in high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or ...

at the age of 9. White would eventually fight his own battle with leukemia and died on August 26, 1995, at the age of 56.

RRHOF controversy, The Walk of Fame, and 2012 Miracles induction

In 1987,

was inducted into the

as a solo artist. Controversially, Ronnie White and the other original members of The Miracles,

, Marv Tarplin, Pete Moore and

Claudette Robinson Claudette Annette Rogers Robinson ( Rogers; born June 20, 1938) is an American singer, best known as a member of the vocal group The Miracles from 1957 to 1972. Her brother Emerson "Sonny" Rogers was a founding member of the group, which befor ...

, were not. However, The Miracles, including White, would later be retroactively inducted into the Hall of Fame by a special committee in 2012, alongside Smokey Robinson. White was also posthumously awarded a star on the

Hollywood Walk Of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Calif ...

on March 20, 2009 along with the other original members of The Miracles. His second wife, Gloria, daughter Pamela, and granddaughter Maya were present. Ronnie White was also posthumously inducted with the rest of the original Miracles into the

Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame The National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame is an independent organization whose mission is to educate and to celebrate, preserve, promote, and present rhythm and blues music globally. History The National Rhythm & Blues Hall of Fame was founded ...

in 2005.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:White, Ronald 1939 births 1995 deaths American rhythm and blues singer-songwriters American soul singers Deaths from leukemia Singers from Detroit American baritones The Miracles members 20th-century American singers Deaths from cancer in Michigan African-American male singers Burials at Woodlawn Cemetery (Detroit) African-American songwriters 20th-century American male singers Singer-songwriters from Michigan