Marvin Gaye was born Marvin Pentz Gay Jr. on the 2nd April 1939 in Washington D.C. His mother was a domestic worker, and his father was a church minister. His father was extremely strict and would discipline his children. His father would also wear female clothing, and this caused him confusion. He was close to his Mother who was loving and encouraging. She told him he would be a great star one day.

Marvin started playing the piano when he was 4 years old. He always wanted to sing, and church gave him the opportunity to do so, singing in his father’s choir. He further developed his passion in high school where he would put together groups, singing more popular genres of music. However, his father did not approve. Torn between church and his love for music he dropped out of high school and joined the United States Air Force at the age of 17. He did not enjoy his experience and left under honourable discharge.

There after he continued to develop his singing and performing in many groups before moving to Detroit at 21 years old. He joined start-up company Motown records and started doing studio sessions drumming and song writing. During this time, he was surrounded by some of Motown’s most talented and popular groups. Being at Motown was described as their own black neighbourhood and they would all date each other.

Marvin met and married the sister of the founder of Motown when he was 21 and she was 36. This gave Marvin a seat at the Motown table. He was rebellious and didn’t want to sing the conventional Motown records. He wanted to have his own musical identity. He admitted he was a bit spoilt, but his aim was to reach a wider audience and in just a couple years he became a star releasing several hits.

In the mid 60’s he reluctantly did a number of romantic duets however his most successful partner was Tammi Terrel. Although though they had great chemistry, they were described to have had a brother sister relationship. Their hits established them as the most popular recording duo of their time. During a concert in October 1967, Tammi collapsed on stage into Marvin’s arms and she was later diagnosed with a brain tumour. She had several surgeries however passed away on the 16th March, 1970, at the age of 24. This experience traumatised Marvin and he went into a great depression which affected his performances.

Around the late 60’s early 70’s, Marvin started thinking about deeper topics like The Civil Rights Movement and the war in Vietnam.  He said something happened with him during this period and he felt a strong urge to write music and lyrics that would touch the souls of men. Marvin Gaye’s album What’s Going On was released in May 1971. Although many around him were scared that the album would damage his image, Marvin was extremely confident, and the album was an instant hit.

In 1972 the mayor of Washington named the 1st May Marvin Gaye Day. At the Kennedy Center that day his father saw him perform for the first time. Marvin said it was the only time that he felt that he made his father proud. Later that year he moved to Los Angeles. He became a victim to the volume and access to drugs. His expensive drug and alcohol addiction and extravagant lifestyle lead to his finances taking a substantial hit. His personal life was also in a bad place. He divorced his wife, remarried and divorced again a couple years later.

Needing to escape Marvin moved to and spent time in Hawaii and London. It was a troubled time for him. However, after meeting a fight promoter, he went to Belgium where he ran, boxed and got back into overall shape. His goal was to be a better artist as he had been through rough times and forgotten his true nature.

After a 3 year absence he returned to America and released his seventeenth studio album which included the hit record Sexual Healing. It was a great success winning him a Grammy Award. He went on tour however became addicted once again. Hid voice and performances went downhill, and he gave his last performance in 1983.

Marvin Gaye was not himself and ended up moving back into his family home. Fans would come to the house night and day and cause a disturbance. This led to clashing with his parents and on the 1st April 1984, the day before his 45th birthday, a fight escalated in the family home and his father fatally shot him.