He began singing in a church choir with his grandmother at the age of 3. He also began playing piano as a child, and by the time he was a teenager, his prowess at the piano earned him a fine arts scholarship to Howard University in 1964. He attended the university for three years, and performed with a jazz trio, The Ric Powell Trio. Ultimately, Hathaway was offered so much industry work that he left before graduating.
Personal life
Hathaway was born in Chicago, Illinois, but grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, where there are currently subdivisions named in his honor. He and his wife, Eulaulah, had two daughters, Lalah and Kenya. Kenya is one of the three backup singers on the hit t.v. program American Idol.
Career
At first, Hathaway worked as songwriter, session musician and producer. He did the arrangements for The Unifics and participated in projects by The Staple Singers, Jerry Butler and Aretha Franklin, as well as with Curtis Mayfield. After becoming a "house producer" at Mayfield's label, Curtom Records, he recorded his first single in 1969, a duet with singer June Conquest called "I Thank You Baby".
Hathaway then signed to Atco Records, which released his first single of note, "The Ghetto, Pt. 1". His debut LP was Everything Is Everything (1970), which was critically acclaimed. His second album, Donny Hathaway, was a major hit. He also recorded an album of duets with former Howard University classmate and label mate Roberta Flack. The album was both a critical and commercial success, including the Ralph MacDonald-penned track "Where Is The Love?", which proved to be not only an R&B hit, but also went Top Five on the pop charts. [1]. The album also included a number of other covers, including versions Carole King's "You've Got a Friend" and "Baby I Love You", originally a hit for Aretha Franklin.
Hathaway followed this flurry of work with some contributions to soundtracks, along with his recording of the theme song to the TV series Maude. Several years after their first collaboration, Hathaway renewed his collaboration with Flack and recorded several additional tracks, including the hit "The Closer I Get to You" (1978).
In the mid-1970s he also produced albums for other artists including Cold Blood, where he expanded the musical range of lead singer Lydia Pense.
Health challenges
At the height of his career, Hathaway began to suffer from severe bouts of depression. The illness wreaked havoc on his life, requiring several hospitalizations. The effects of Hathaway's depression also drove a wedge into Flack and Hathaway's friendship; they did not reconcile for several years, and did not release additional music until the 1978 release of "The Closer I Get To You". The single became a pop and R&B hit, and Flack and Hathaway returned to the studios to record a second album of duets.
Death
On January 13, 1979, Hathaway was found dead on the sidewalk in front of the Essex House in New York City, where he had been living. His body showed no signs of struggle, and the glass from the window in Hathaway's room had been removed; investigators determined Hathaway had committed suicide. Friends, fans, and the media were mystified at his death, since his career and his partnership with Flack were on an upswing. Flack was devastated by his death, and included the few duet tracks they had finished on her next album.
Hathaway was considered an eccentric by many. He cultivated many unusual interests, and was a devotee of mid-20th century French classical composers. Several anecdotes about Hathaway are contained in Jerry Wexler's book Rhythm And The Blues.
On soul group The Whispers' 1980 self-titled album, the group paid homage with "A Song for Donny," written by fellow soul singer Carrie Lucas. The song was set to the melody of Hathaway's "This Christmas."
He was a major influence on the singing style of singer-guitarist George Benson.
Pop singer Justin Timberlake claims Hathaway is his favorite artist and biggest musical influence.
Hathaway's daughter Lalah is an accomplished R&B/jazz singer.
Amy Winehouse refers to "Mr. Hathaway" in her song "Rehab."
On NY artist NAS's album "Hip Hop is Dead" on the song Blunt Ashes, he tells a story that includes reportedly claiming Donny Hathaway was thrown from his window.
Modern R&B singer and 2003 American Idol winnerRuben Studdard grew up with Hathaway's music, and did cover versions of the Hathaway songs "For All We Know" and "This Christmas."
Another American Idol contestant, 2006 second runner-upElliott Yamin, covered Leon Russell's "A Song for You", popularized by Hathaway, in his audition, during Hollywood Week and again during the show's primetime performances, as well as in front of a crowd at the baseball stadium during his visit back home (when he was eliminated, his final video clips segued through several of the performances). After the April 25, 2006 show in which Yamin performed "A Song for You" and said he wanted to return the "spotlight" to Donny Hathaway, sales of A Donny Hathaway Collection shot all the way up to twenty-third on Amazon.com CD sales chart, with some commenters citing the performance as their reason for buying Hathaway's CD. In December 2006, Yamin also released a cover of "This Christmas", and Yamin's March 2007 self-titled debut album featured a cover of "A Song For You".
Hathaway's daughter, Kenya, is a backup singer in the house band for American Idol.
Season 6 finalist Chris Richardson auditioned with Hathaway's "A Song for You."
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