As a child, I can remember waking up to our parents’ streaming the ‘Tom Joyner Morning Show’ on the radio, and they would often play Soul, R&B, and sometimes Gospel music. I did not quite understand why some of the singers would scream and cry in their songs but as I got older, I started to study their lyrics, and I realize that I was experiencing real soul music that touched your soul. There were acts like Al Green, Mahalia Jackson, and even Mary J. Blige that changed the scene of soul music. One of Mary J. Blige’s hits was ‘I’m going down, and when I first heard the song, it was like heaven to my ears! As a teenager I began to discover more sub-genres of soul music like R&B Soul and ‘Neo-Soul; there were acts like Maxwell, Erykah Badu, and even Neo that made you feel happy and sometimes sad depending on what songs they played on the radio. Southern Soul music was a genre that was rarely played on the radio, and it was something my parents grew up listening to, but it was something unknown to the younger audiences; there were acts like Frankie Beverly & Mays, Betty Wright, and even the great Sir Charles Jones that all taught us about the power of love. I first discovered Calvin Richardson when my coworker played his hit song at the time ‘Can’t Let Go, and it brought me back to when I first heard one of Mary J. Blige’s hit songs on the radio.
Calvin Richardson was born on December 16, 1976, in Monroe, North Carolina, and Calvin is the fifth of nine children. There is not much known about Calvin’s parents and siblings, but Calvin is currently married to Jacqueline Richardson; together they share two sons Souljah Richardson, and Chase Richardson. Calvin also has a daughter named Jasmine Richardson. When Calvin was growing up his mother sang in a local gospel group called ‘The Willing Wonders, and Calvin often sang along with the group, but he also dabbled into secular Soul music and Funk music. Some of Calvin’s influences were Bobby Womack, Sam Cooke, and Otis Redding just to name a few. Calvin was once a group member of a vocal group called ‘Undacova’ whose song “Love Slave” was included on the New Jersey Drive Soundtrack in 1995. Calvin later launched his solo career by debuting his Country Boy album on Uptown/Universal Records in 1999; the album included a cover of Bobby Womack’s “I Wish He Didn’t Trust Me So Much.” Calvin was also featured on Angie Stone’s Mahogany Soul album. As Calvin’s stardom grew he also wrote songs for such acts as Charlie Wilson, and even Raphael Saadiq.
Today, Calvin is still touring, and making albums; he just released his ‘Gold Dust’ album, and he has a new memoir book titled, ‘Do You Without Them. Calvin’s new book gives his fans an inside look at how Calvin reached his success as a soulful artist in the music industry. Calvin is a devoted, loving husband and a great father that specializes in a medium called love. Calvin speaks his truth when he sings his lyrics, and he informs and inspires us with his stories.
