Los Angeles, California, October 29, 2020…Otis Williams, the legendary, Grammy-Winning icon, whose meteoric rise to superstardom as a founding member of the original super-group the Temptations, is turning 79, this Friday, October 30th.
The Rock and Roll & Grammy Hall of Famer, Williams’ is the sole-surviving, member of the original, classic line-up of the Temptations: Melvin Franklin, Otis Williams, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams and David Ruffin. Williams has continued to lead the group, for nearly 60 years, over the 20th and 21st centuries. The Temptations, now under the umbrella of Universal Music Enterprises, released their most recent studio album in 2018, entitled All the Time.
Named the “#1 R&B Artists in History,” in 2017 by Billboard Magazine, the Temptations were the first Motown recording artists to deliver the Temptations’ and Motown’s first-ever, Grammy Award at the 11th Annual Grammy Awards (1968) for “Best Rhythm & Blues Performance by a Duo or Group, Vocal or Instrumental,” for the song, “Cloud Nine.” The Temptations have five Grammy Awards, including the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.
The Temptations have 16 #1 R& B albums, 44 Top 10 R&B hit songs, including 14 #1 R&B singles, and also, four Billboard Hot 100 #1 singles, including what some may call their magnum opus, “My Girl.” In 2018, “My Girl” was entered into the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress and was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998.
Otis Williams, also a songwriter and producer, is an entertainment star whose superstardom is chronicled in: his critically acclaimed autobiography, Temptations, written with The New York Times bestselling writer Patricia Romanowski, now available in an audiobook edition; the Emmy Award-Winning television mini-series, “Temptations;” and now in a Broadway Musical, Ain’t Too Proud: The Life and Times of the Temptations, which won the 2019 Tony Award for “Best Choreography.”
The Temptations have toured the globe and entertained millions of concert-goers, and television viewers. Most recently, their story as seen through Williams’ lens, came to the Broadway stage. Once Broadway re-opens its doors again, fans can once again witness the ups and downs of their extraordinary journey and enjoy their prolific catalog of music. A touring production of the musical is also scheduled to open around the country once theaters re-open.
Earlier this year, the Temptations released a message for our times, a new soulful version of “You’ve Got a Friend,” as a YouTube video. The video was recorded in a private session in Los Angeles, California.