Lou Rawls
Louis Allen Rawls (December 1, 1933 – January 6, 2006) was an American baritone singer.[1] He released 61 albums, sold more than 40 million records,[2] and had numerous charting singles, most notably the song "You'll Never Find Another Love like Mine". He also worked as a film, television and voice actor. He was a three-time winner of the Best Male R&B Vocal Performance Grammy Award.
Lou Rawls
January 6, 2006 (aged 72)
- Singer
- record producer
- composer
- actor
1941–2006
Vocals
Early life[edit]
Rawls was born in Chicago on December 1, 1933, and raised by his grandmother in the Ida B. Wells projects on the city's South Side. He began singing in the Greater Mount Olive Baptist Church choir at the age of seven and later sang with local groups through which he met Sam Cooke, who was nearly three years older, and Curtis Mayfield.[3][4]
Personal life[edit]
Rawls was married three times. His third wife, Nina, a former flight attendant, managed his career during his last two years. They had one son, Aiden Rawls. Rawls was also survived by another son, Lou Rawls Jr. (deceased 2023), two daughters, Louanna Rawls and Kendra Smith (both of Los Angeles), and four grandchildren.[9]
Legacy[edit]
Guion Bluford, the first African-American astronaut,[14] brought the Lou Rawls album When the Night Comes (Epic, 1983) into space with him. It contained the song "Wind Beneath My Wings".[15] In 1989, he performed vocals for "The Music and Heroes of America" segment in the animated television miniseries This Is America, Charlie Brown.
In January 2004, Rawls was honored by the United Negro College Fund for his more than 25 years of charity work with the organization. Instead of hosting and performing as he usually did, Rawls was given the seat of honor and celebrated by his performing colleagues, including Stevie Wonder, The O'Jays, Gerald Levert, and Ashanti.
In 2009, Pathway Entertainment announced its intention to produce a biopic about Rawls's life, tentatively titled Love Is a Hurtin' Thing: The Lou Rawls Story,[16] with Rawls' son, Lou Rawls Jr., writing the screenplay[16] and Isaiah Washington reportedly playing Rawls.[16]