Smokey Robinson Biography

Fast Facts

• In 1987, he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
• Was an award recipient at the 2006 Kennedy Center Honors
• Won a National Medal of Arts in 2002
• Received an honorary doctorate degree in music from Howard University in 2006
• Started out singing in high school, where he formed the music group The Miracles
• Founded the ready-to-eat food company Smokey Robinson Foods
• Grew up in the same neighborhood as legendary musician Diana Ross and was a childhood friend of Aretha Franklin
• In the 1960s, he started working as the vice president of Motown Records
• Was the person who suggested to music executive Berry Gordy that he should start Motown Records