"I don't ever balk at being considered a Motown person, because Motown is the greatest musical event that ever happened in the history of music."

• Born William "Smokey" Robinson Jr. on Feb. 19, 1940, in Detroit, Michigan
   
• As the founder and frontman of the Motown vocal group the Miracles, Robinson scored a variety of hits in the 1960s, including "You've Really Got A Hold On Me," "I Second That Emotion" and the No. 1 smash, "The Tears Of A Clown."
   
• Robinson also served as a primary songwriter for the Motown label, penning hits such as "Two Lovers" (Mary Wells), "My Girl" (Temptations) and "Ain't That Peculiar" (Marvin Gaye).
   
• Robinson scored his first GRAMMY nomination for his 1979 Top 5 solo hit "Cruisin'," which earned a nod for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Male at the 22nd GRAMMY Awards. He took home his first win for "Just To See Her" in the same category at the 30th GRAMMY Awards.
   
• Robinson was among the attendees who advocated on behalf of music creators at the 2016 GRAMMYs on the Hill Awards, the annual gala dubbed as "Washington's most interesting mix of music and politics."
   
• The Detroit native was honored by the  Recording Academy with a GRAMMY Legend Award in 1990 and a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999. Four Miracles recordings have been inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame, including "Shop Around" and "The Tracks Of My Tears."
   
• In 2013 the legendary Robinson was honored with MusiCares' Stevie Ray Vaughan Award in recognition of his commitment to helping others with the addiction recovery process.