Bill Withers, Smooth jazz Artist

William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020)

His songs speak for themselves. Mary J. Blige‘s version of “Lean on Me” echoed in Washington D.C.’s Lincoln Memorial at the “We Are One” pre-inaugural festivities for president Barack Obama, just as Withers’ words had similarly honored president Bill Clinton. “Ain’t No Sunshine” set the scene for a much talked about episode in the hit series Scandal in 2013. Commercial uses, including the Amazon Prime’s campaign featuring “Lovely Day,” match the music to new markets. Alternative Rock group Alt-J brings a new interpretation to “Lovely Day” while Justin Timberlake performs a mash-up of the song at the Oscars in 2018; Willie Nelson and Mavis Staples’ duet of “Grandma’s Hands” is a striking rendition on his latest release To All The Girls; and at the unveiling of the Bill Russell Legacy Project in Boston, a newly-penned song “I Am My Father’s Son”, performed by Johnny Mathis

Born: Slab Fork, West Virginia, USA

Genre: Soul, R&B, smooth soul, blues, funk