Stevie Wonder is a transformative figure in pop music—an impassioned vocalist, multi-instrumentalist and producer who reshaped popular music history. First emerging as Little Stevie Wonder in the early ’60s, Stevland Hardaway Judkins began as a child star covering Ray Charles and soon evolved into the sophisticated soul of singles like “For Once in My Life”, showing future teen idols how to gracefully age out of kinder-pop novelty. As Black Power surged in the early ’70s, Stevie became a symbol of both the movement’s righteous indignation and its hope for a more socially just world. His iconic album run from 1972’s Talking Book to 1976’s Songs in the Key of Life (a period that yielded hits such as “Sir Duke”, “Superstition” and “As”) legitimised the LP format for Black soul/R&B artists, who had been previously relegated to singles status, blending social commentary with danceable psychedelic funk. Tracks like “Higher Ground” mixed grit with spiritual uplift, while “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” and “Isn’t She Lovely” became timeless love songs. Entering the ’80s, Wonder adapted with synth-soul hits such as “Part-Time Lover”, “That Girl” and “I Just Called to Say I Love You”. Though his output slowed in the ’90s, Stevie remains an icon; his appearances, whether singing at Barack Obama’s inauguration or playing harmonica on Mark Ronson’s Uptown Special, carry an unmatched grandeur and gravitas.