He also became a Motown vice president, producer and talent scout.
Two years ago he received the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.
At 78, he says hes healthy and happy.
When hes not singing, hes doing yoga, eating vegan or playing golf.
In October we invited music journalist Toure to interview the Motown legend.
How are you feeling now about the loss of Aretha?
But I know that spiritually shes in a better place.
She was suffering at the end there, and I dont ever want to see her suffer.
So now shes cool, and Im cool cause shes cool.
The Detroit you grew up in was so musically fertile.
There were thousands upon thousands of talented people there.
We used to have group battles on the street corners.
There were groups that would outsing me and the Miracles.
But other cities are loaded with good musicians.
What was different about Detroit and your era?
But Berry Gordy gave us an outlet.
What was unique about Berry?
He was a music man.
So Berry decided to start his own record company and gave us that outlet.
Some record execs succeed because they have the ears and some because they can make the business work.
But we had a music man at the helm.
Somebody whose first love was music and producing records and writing songs.
So that was a real asset for us.
Did he help you become a better songwriter?
What did he teach you?
How to make my song be one idea.
When I met Berry, the Miracles had gone to an audition with Jackie Wilsons managers.
Berry was there that day to hand in some new songs.
We sang five songs I had written.
I had 100 songs in a loose-leaf notebook.
But most of them were haphazard, because my first verse had nothing to do with my second verse.
