Today in 1975, Stevie Wonder signed a groundbreaking contract with Motown worth $37 million for seven albums over seven years.
TRANSCRIPT
On the brink of retiring from the music industry completely, a change of heart, soul and contract terms pulled Stevie Wonder back into the fold of Motown. On this day in 1975 Wonder inked the most lucrative music contract in history at that time. 7 years, seven records for a whopping 37 million dollars. Rolling Stone reports that after being under a contract from the age of 11, Wonder says he had started having a quarter life crisis and desired to move to Ghana, where he believes his ancestors came from. He was planning to devote himself to humanitarian work, particularly providing care to disabled children. In March of 1975 Wonder announced his plans to have one more final concert tour, which sent the public and record labels into a frenzy, ready to give Stevie Wonder a great deal of artistic control.