- Source of Wealth: Music
- Birth Place: Washington, D.C., United States
- Marital Status: Divorced (Jan Gaye)
- Full Name: Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr
- Nationality: American
- Date of Birth: April 2, 1939
- Ethnicity: African-American
- Occupation: Soul Singer, Songwriter, Musician
- Children: 3 (Marvin III, Nona, Frankie)
Influential R&B singer Marvin Gaye’s estate has an estimated value of $5 million. He was a fantastic singer as well as a songwriter. He was included in Forbes “Top Earning Dead Celebrities” list of 2008, coming in at the 13th place.
Born Marvin Pentz Gay, Jr. on April 2, 1939 in Washington, D.C., his father was a church minister, so he was raised amidst the sound of gospel music and evangelical messages. By the time he was 15, Marvin was singing in his father’s church and in the band The Rainbows. The Rainbows soon changed their name and became The Marquees.
He played the drums in Smockey Robinson and The Miracles when the band was starting out. It helped him figure out that he wanted to dedicate his life to being a jazz singer and thus started singing with a band called The Moonglows.
In the beginning of the 60’s, he signed with Motown Records and is credited with helping them shape their distinctive sound. Before his first LP was released he added an “e” to his name and during the next years he transformed his image to that of a sex symbol and his career quickly took off.