Louis Allen Rawls was born on the 1st December 1933, in Chicago, Illinois USA and was a singer with his most famous and successful hits somewhere between jazz, soul, blues, pop and disco including “Love Is a Hurtin’ Thing” (1966) and “Dead End Street” (1967) among others. He was the winner of three Grammy Awards, and was active in the entertainment industry from 1951 to 2006, when he passed away.
How rich was the singer? It had been estimated by authoritative sources that Lou Rawls’ net worth was over $10 million, converted to the present day. Music was the main source of his net worth.
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Lou Rawls Net Worth $10 Million
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To begin with, the boy was raised by his grandmother, and spent his entire youth in the city of Chicago. From the age of 7, he sang in a choir in church, and after school, he and his friend Sam Cook were the founding members of a local gospel group – Teenage Kings of Harmony. At the age of 20, Louis confirmed his ambitions as a gospel singer by joining the troupe of Chosen Gospel Singers. Then he joined the Pilgrim Travellers in 1954, leaving his new group only to carry out his military service between 1956 and 1958. Upon his return, they went on tour again, and during one he was seriously injured in a car accident, declared dead, finally in a coma, and suffering from amnesia for almost three months. Lou then took took the decision to break with gospel, and a year later the singer moved to Los Angeles, touring the city’s cafes and clubs. He was noticed by Nick Venet from Capitol, and so he signed his first solo contract in 1962.
Between 1962 and 1966, Lou Rawls released six albums with Capitol. Keeping the style that allowed him to launch his career, the singer remained faithful to jazz despite the commercial limits of the genre, so the sales did not take off, and it was not until “The Shadow of Your Smile” (1966) which entered the Billboard R & B charts. In 1966 appeared “Live!” – the album went gold and accelerated Rawls career, and then the studio album “Soulin” (1966) confirmed the turning point in his career. Even though it surprised listeners by the sometimes awkward mixture of soul and jazz, it marked the beginnings of the popular career of Lou Rawls. In 1967, he recorded “Dead End Street” for which he received his first Grammy, and gradually the singer completely abandoned his jazz origins to pour into soul, and won another Grammy for “A Natural Man” (1971).
In 1976, Lou Rawls joined the Philadelphia International Records label, and recorded a new album “All Things In Time”. Some later albums, such as “When You’ve Heard Lou”, “You’ve Heard It All” of 1977 included hit singles such as “Lady Love” and “Unmistakably Lou”. For the latter, the singer received a third Grammy Award, and in 1982, Rawls received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Throughout his singing career, Rawls also appeared in many films, television programs and advertisements. The films included “Leaving Las Vegas” (1995), “The Blues Brothers 2000” (1998) and “Driven” (2001), also appearing in the spin-off “Baywatch Nights” (1995–1997) among others.
Finally, in the personal life of the singer, Rawls was married three times, firstly to Lana Taylor(1963-73), then to Ceci(1989-2003), meantime partnered with Margaret Schaeffer(1998-2003), and finally to Nina Malek Inman from 2004-06 – they had a son. He also had two daughters. Lou Rawls died of lung cancer aged 72 on 6th January 2006 in Los Angeles, California.
December 1, 1933, Chicago, Illinois, United States
Died
January 6, 2006, Los Angeles, California, United States
Place Of Birth
Chicago
Height
5 ft 9 in (1.778 m)
Weight
98 kg
Profession
Singer, Musician, Voice Actor, Actor, Film Score Composer
Education
Dunbar Vocational High School, Dillard University, You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine, Love Is a Hurtin' Thing, Natural Man, Central Michigan University
Nationality
American
Spouse
Lana Taylor(1963-73), Ceci(1989-2003), Margaret Schaeffer(1998-2003)
Children
Louanna Rawls, Aiden Allen Rawls, Kendra Rawls, Lou Rawls Jr.
Parents
Thomas Terrell Rawls, Deadra Whitley
Partner
Nina Malek Inman Rawls (m. 2004–2006)
Nicknames
Lou Allen Rawls , Louis Allen Rawls , Rawls, Lou , Lou Rawles , Lou Rawis , Lou Ramls
Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance (1978, 1972, 1968), American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Male Artist (1979), American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Single (1977)
Record Labels
Capitol Records, Bell Records, Philadelphia International Records
Albums
“Live!” (1966), “Soulin” (1966), “A Natural Man” (1971), “All Things In Time” (1976), “When You've Heard Lou”, “You've Heard It All” (1977)
Music Groups
"Teenage Kings of Harmony", "Chosen Gospel Singers", "Pilgrim Travellers"
Nominations
Hollywood Walk of Fame (1982)
Movies
“Leaving Las Vegas” (1995), “The Blues Brothers 2000” (1998), “Driven” (2001)
TV Shows
“Baywatch Nights” (1995–1997), “Live in Concert: North Sea Jazz” (2007)
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Trademark
1
Rich,smooth, baritone voice
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Quote
1
I don't put myself in any particular category. Whatever the occasion calls for, I rise to the occasion. There are no limits to music, so why should I limit myself? - as a gospel, soul, blues, jazz and pop artist
2
"I began to learn acceptance, direction, understanding and perception, all elements that had been sadly lacking in my life. I might have lived long enough to learn all this in the long haul, but I would have been just another soul taking up time and space before I learned." - on surviving a 1958 car crash. Rawls was pronounced dead on the way to the hospital. He was in a coma for five days.
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Fact
1
He's best known for his #1 hit song, "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine".
Despite having absolutely nothing to do with the film itself, he appeared on the DVD commentary track for the film Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004).
5
His performance of "You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine", during the 1977 Grammy Awards was disrupted by a coughing fit. He gamely kept performing and managed to finish the song.
6
Early in his career backed up Sam Cooke on Sam's signature hit "Bring It On Home To Me".
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He was awarded a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording at 6931 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, California.
8
Some sources list 1935 as Lou's birth year but a domestic violence case revealed his birth date to be December 1, 1933.
9
His telethon, which served as a fundraiser for the United Negro College and other black colleges, has raised more than $200 million since 1979. More than 10,000 scholarships have been provided.
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His career was comprised of more than 70 albums, three Grammys, 13 Grammy nominations, one platinum album, five gold albums and a gold single.
11
On 19 October, 2005, while listening to an Akron, Ohio radio morning program ("Matt Patrick and Angela In the Morning" on WKDD), Lou and Nina Rawls heard about a local woman who was about to lose her home after coping with medical bills for her special needs son left her in arrears on her mortgage. The couple immediately telephoned the radio station to donate whatever amount of money it took to bring the woman's mortgage to "Current" status.
12
He and his wife and manager Nina, who was 37 years younger than Lou, had a baby boy, Aiden Allen Rawls, in Akron, Ohio, on January 10, 2005. The baby weighed in at 6 pounds, 14 ounces. Nina and Lou used in vitro fertilization and another woman as the birth mother.
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A paratrooper in the Army's 101st Airborne Division (1955 - 1958)
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Ex-companion Margaret Schaffer filed a lawsuit against Rawls for $12 million, claiming he backed out of a verbal agreement to support her financially even if they broke up. (27 March 2003)
15
Released from Bernalillo County Jail (Albuquerque, New Mexico) after being arrested on one count of battery against his companion, Nina Inman. (16 January 2003)
16
Praised by Frank Sinatra for having "the classiest singing and silkiest chops in the singing game".
$10 Million
