Luther Vandross

Luther Vandross
Vandross performing with Diana Ross in New York, July 2000
Background information
Birth name	Luther Ronzoni Vandross, Jr.
Born	(1951-04-20)April 20, 1951 New York City, New York, US
Died	July 1, 2005(2005-07-01) (aged 54) Edison, New Jersey, US
Genres	R&B soul pop quiet storm
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter record producer
Instruments	Vocals keyboards
Years active	1969–2005
Labels	Cotillion Epic Virgin J Sony Legacy
Associated acts	Patti LaBelle Change Chic Martha Wash Dionne Warwick Mariah Carey Richard Marx Whitney Houston Busta Rhymes Beyoncé David Bowie Janet Jackson
Website	luthervandross.com

Luther Ronzoni Vandross, Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Throughout his career, Vandross was an in-demand background vocalist for several different artists including Judy Collins, Chaka Khan, Bette Midler, Diana Ross, David Bowie, Janet Jackson, Barbra Streisand, Ben E. King, and Donna Summer. He later became the lead singer of the group Change, which released its certified gold debut album, The Glow of Love, in 1980 on Warner Bros. Records. After Vandross left the group, he was signed to Epic Records as a solo artist and released his debut solo album, Never Too Much, in 1981.

His hit songs include "Never Too Much", "Here and Now", "Any Love", "Power of Love/Love Power", "I Can Make It Better" and "For You to Love". Many of his songs were covers of original music by other artists such as "If This World Were Mine" (duet with Cheryl Lynn), "Since I Lost My Baby", "Superstar" and "Always and Forever". Duets such as "The Closer I Get to You" with Beyoncé, "Endless Love" with Mariah Carey and "The Best Things in Life Are Free" with Janet Jackson were all hit songs in his career.