Sylvia Rose Moy (September 15, 1938 – April 15, 2017) was an American

songwriter A songwriter is a person who creates musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music genre and film scoring. ...

and

record producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

, formerly associated with the

Motown Records Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

group. The first woman at the

Detroit Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

-based music label to write and produce for Motown acts, she is probably best known for her songs written with and for

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

Early life and family

Moy grew up on the northeast side of Detroit with her eight brothers and sisters, the family performing on pots and pans to keep themselves busy and musical. Once she reached school, she played jazz and classical, but found her true place behind the scenes at Motown Records.

Life and career

Born and brought up on the northeast side of Detroit, Sylvia Moy, ''Songwriters Hall of Fame''
Retrieved 16 April 2017 Moy studied and performed

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be #Relationship to other music traditions, distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical mu ...

at Northern High School, before she was seen performing in a club in 1963 by

Marvin Gaye Marvin Pentz Gaye Jr. (; April 2, 1939 – April 1, 1984) was an American Rhythm and blues, R&B and soul singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He helped shape the sound of Motown in the 1960s, first as an in-house session player an ...

and Mickey Stevenson. She was given recording and songwriting contracts by Motown, but was urged to prioritize her songwriting because the company was short of material for its artists. Graham Betts, ''Motown Encyclopedia''
Retrieved 17 February 2015 According to

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

's autobiography ''To Be Loved'', Moy was directly responsible for the label's retention of

. Gordy wrote that, after Stevie's voice began to change as a result of puberty, he was going to drop him from the label. It was then that Moy went to Gordy and asked "if she could come up with a hit for Stevie would he reconsider"; he agreed. Her first writing success came with " Uptight (Everything's Alright)", which she co-wrote with Henry "Hank" Cosby after hearing Wonder improvising on piano. Moy wrote lyrics to the song, which she conveyed to Wonder by singing into his headphones one line ahead as he recorded. Among the subsequent hit singles Moy wrote and/or produced while at Motown were Stevie Wonder's " My Cherie Amour", " I Was Made to Love Her", and " Never Had a Dream Come True"; and " Honey Chile" and " Love Bug Leave My Heart Alone" by

Martha and the Vandellas Martha and the Vandellas (known from 1967 to 1973 as Martha Reeves & the Vandellas) were an American girl group formed in Detroit, Michigan in 1957. The group achieved fame in the 1960s as a major act for Motown Records. Formed by friends Annett ...

.Ribowsky, Mark
Signed, Sealed, and Delivered: The Soulful Journey of Stevie Wonder
p.133-44 (2010) She also co-wrote " This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak for You)" with Holland-Dozier-Holland for

the Isley Brothers The Isley Brothers ( ) are an American soul group originally from Cincinnati, Ohio, that began as a vocal trio consisting of the brothers O'Kelly Isley Jr., Rudolph Isley and Ronald Isley in the 1950s. With a career spanning over seven decades, ...

; and " It Takes Two" with William "Mickey" Stevenson for Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston. She later wrote theme songs for several television shows, and was involved in writing film music. She was inducted into the

Songwriters Hall of Fame The Songwriters Hall of Fame (SHOF) is an American institution founded in 1969 by songwriter Johnny Mercer, music publisher/songwriter Abe Olman, and publisher/executive Howie Richmond to honor those whose work represent and maintain the heri ...

alongside fellow Motown songwriter and producer Hank Cosby in 2006.Perone, James E
The sound of Stevie Wonder: his words and music
p. 5-11 (2006)Mitchell, Gail (22 April 2006)
Rhythm & Blues
''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' She also set up a non-profit group, Center for Creative Communications, working with underprivileged children in Detroit. Moy died of complications from pneumonia in Dearborn, Michigan, on April 15, 2017, at the age of 78.

Accolades

In 1969, Moy won three BMI Awards for the songs "Honey Chile," "I Was Made to Love Her," and "Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day."

Selective Discography

Singles Songs written by Sylvia Moy, ''MusicVF.com''
Retrieved 16 April 2017

References

External links

* * *
Adam White, "Sylvia and Stevie: inspiration and influence"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moy, Sylvia 1938 births 2017 deaths African-American songwriters American women composers Record producers from Michigan Songwriters from Michigan Motown artists American women songwriters Deaths from pneumonia in Michigan American women record producers Northern High School (Detroit, Michigan) alumni African-American women musicians 20th-century African-American people 21st-century African-American people 20th-century African-American women 21st-century African-American women Musicians from Detroit