“But even those of us lucky enough to live our dreams can find ways to turn them into nightmares if we’re not careful too. I know this first hand because I nearly threw all my blessings away.” – Smokey Robinson
Part of the Historic Motown Story
“The truth is that I’m probably one of the most blessed people on the face of the earth,” says the legendary Smokey Robinson, one of the most successful singer-songwriters of all time and cornerstone artists that made Motown Records into “The Sound of Young America,” as it was once known. “I thank God all the time for all those blessings. See, my life truly has been filled with miracles, and I’m not just talking about my great group The Miracles either.”
Smokey Robinson adds with that famously smooth voice of his…”There have been so many times along the way when I was in the right place at the right time,” he says. “First and foremost, there I was being in Detroit, and being fortunate enough to run right into Berry Gordy just as he was beginning to dream his dream and make it all come true more than a half century ago. Then we were all so lucky to be part of something historic that had never been before and never will be again — the whole Motown story.”
Amazing Motown Family
Smokey Robinson was a key part of the Motown Story, serving not just as a best-selling artist, but also as an executive, producer and songwriter behind countless classics and soulful hits. He remains very proud – and thankful – for the Motown experience and his Motown family. “And in our family, we were blessed to have some of the great artists of all time like Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, The Temptations, The Four Tops and Diana Ross and the Supremes,” Smokey recalls. “Then there was my baby brother Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5. They came to Motown a little later, and they took things to a whole other level. Michael was probably the greatest entertainer of all times and a total natural and I know because I saw it for myself.”
More Than 4,000 Songs
During the course of his 50-year career in music, Smokey Robinson accumulated more than 4,000 songs to his credit with his tenor voice, impeccable timing and profound sense of lyric. “But even those of us who are lucky enough to live our dreams can find ways to turn them into nightmares if we’re not too careful,” Smokey advises. “I know this first hand because I nearly threw all my blessings away. The biggest obstacle in my life was drugs. I had two and a half years doing weed and cocaine when I was old enough to know better. That was a recipe for disaster.”
How Smokey Overcame Drug Addiction
Smokey Robinson is now a national drugs spokesperson for the government, and speaks all over to judges and at drug rehab facilities around the country. “As smooth as people might think I am, drugs destroyed me for a time there,” he shares. “That was the toughest obstacle that I ever had to overcome, and the way that I overcame it was spiritual — through God. I went I got prayed for, and that made all the difference in my life.”
“That was back in May of 1986. I lost two and a half years of my life to drugs, and at the end of that, I was dead. Thankfully, a friend came and got me to a prayer service, and I realized that I didn’t have all the answers in the world. That was the turning point in my life. Drugs were killing the best part of me. I had always been a spiritual person, but I let that slip away for cocaine and weed, and my life went to hell, literally. I had to look to God for strength; and I’ve never touched the stuff again or even been tempted ever since then.”
Smokey Robinson’s Empowering Thoughts
“I’m at war against drugs because young people – and not so young people – need to know that drugs will kill your dreams and they will kill you.”
“Follow your dreams and don’t block your blessings with the drugs that will kill you.”
Does this important message – not only for drug abuse, but also for alcohol, smoking, or whatever “drug” is killing you – resonate with you?
Copyright 2015 Jerry Gladstone