The biography of Sylvia Moy, Motown’s first certified female in-house producer and songwriter, and one of the authors behind classic hits like “My Cherie Amour,” “Uptight (Everything’s Alright),” and a slew of other time-honored tunes.
"More than a biography, It's No Wonder is a long-overdue act of recognition."
Booklist (starred review)
Imagine a world without the music of Stevie Wonder. A world without hits like “I Was Made to Love Her” and “Shoo-Be-Doo-Be-Doo-Da-Day.” That’s the world we would live in had it not been for Sylvia Moy, a woman whose legacy has been carefully tucked away within the annals of music history—until now.
It’s No Wonder examines the groundbreaking career of the pioneer who battled sexism and broke down barriers to become Motown’s first certified female in-house songwriter and producer. As the lone woman in a room full of men, the odds were stacked against Moy from the start. Amidst racial strife at the height of the Civil Rights Movement, most African American women who were allowed into the music industry could only dream of a career as a singer. Nevertheless, the Detroit native found unprecedented success as both a songwriter and producer. In addition to single-handedly saving Stevie Wonder’s early career at Motown, Moy solidified herself as one of the label’s most prolific composers, penning many of Wonder’s classic hits as well as songs for other Motown acts like “Honey Chile,” “It Takes Two,” “This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak For You),” “My Baby Loves Me,” “(We’ve Got) Honey Love,” “Forget Me Not,” “With a Child’s Heart,” and countless others.
Meticulously researched and fiercely feminist, It’s No Wonder is a historical corrective that restores Sylvia Moy to her rightful place at the forefront of music history.
Media contact: Tara Kennedy, Publicity Director of Grand Central Publishing and Da Capo, Tara.Kennedy@hbgusa.com
African-American stories were overlooked by mainstream media until John H. Johnson showed the world the value of black life. In his magazines EBONY and JET, the publisher and businessman presented never-before-told accounts and used captivating, memorable images to share stories of black people. In Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built (The Life & Legacy of Pioneering Publishing Magnate), Dr. Margena A. Christian conducts extensive archival research, drawing upon rare sources and a personal decade-long relationship as an employee under the direct tutelage of Johnson. She meticulously constructs the complex story of what made the founder of these magazines become one of history’s greatest publishers and businessmen. The poor boy from Arkansas City, Arkansas, who picked cotton as a child, advised presidents and civil rights leaders. He went on to become the first black person named to the Forbes 400 richest Americans and amassed an empire, ranging from publishing, cosmetics, travel, radio stations, TV shows, hair care products, and world’s largest traveling fashion show.
Reviews
In her moving and very personal account of publishing magnate John H. Johnson’s journey from a childhood of poverty in Arkansas to his perch as one of the most iconic and influential business leaders in America, Dr. Margena Christian does more than chronicle an amazing success story. Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built is an intimate portrait of the man behind the mythology. It explores and unpacks the drive and magnetic personal appeal that enabled Johnson to create a barrier-shattering, internationally-acclaimed company that always maintained the feel of a close-knit family. This is the kind of account that only an insider could write.
Dean, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University and Board Member of the American Society of Magazine Editors
Empire: The House That John H. Johnson Built is meticulously researched and wonderfully readable. It is a gift to generations of readers, black and white, and all Americans. The amount of detail evidenced in Dr. Margena Christian’s work is astonishing. In the years subsequent to Mr. Johnson’s death, she documents the empire’s decline with a dizzying list of facts laid out chronologically. Dr. Christian has written a singularly important book and written it well. She offers a compendium of black history as told in the works of the unstoppable and brilliant businessman John H. Johnson and his brain children: EBONY and JET.
Illinois Poet Laureate 2020 and author A Surprised Queenhood in the New Black Sun: The Life & Legacy of Gwendolyn Brooks
Dr. Margena Christian’s passionate and lyrical historical accounting of the life of Mr. Johnson and the empire he built is a brilliant tribute and lesson of fortitude, determination and drive. Mr Johnson’s life epitomizes the African-American plight to have real stake in the American Dream. He achieved that and more, putting our culture on full display. Christian was a meticulous student and one of his few, true protégés. Applause and praise for this beautifully told journey that allows us to have a front row seat at this institution that was indeed, as Mr. Johnson so eloquently instilled in his dedicated staff of journalists: “It’s more than a magazine. It’s a movement.”
--Lyah B. LeFlore-Ituen
TV producer and co-author Tell the Truth & Shame the Devil: The Life, Legacy, and Love of My Son Michael Brown with Lezley McSpadden
In this remarkably revealing book about a larger-than-life figure, Dr. Margena Christian has brought the sharply critical eye of the scholar and the finely-honed narrative ability of the journalist together to provide an insightful and significant work of American history. We see in this work the unique insider’s view of the complexity of John H. Johnson and the transformational power of his magazines and cosmetics company, in successfully promoting more positive images of African Americans in articles and advertising, while documenting the most important moments of black life and history in the last half of the 20th century.
Professor, Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern University, and co-author Death of Innocence: The Story of the Hate Crime That Changed America
Media contact: pr@margenachristian.com
Wallace Safford was the former personal bodyguard for Prince whose career began at fifteen by doing security for iconic artists, including The Commodores, Parliament Funkadelic, Earth, Wind & Fire and Teddy Pendergrass. Safford subsequently transitioned from handling security with Prince at the height of his career to performing on stage as a background dancer and singer for the Academy Award-winning musician, who even recorded a song named in his honor appropriately titled, Wally. Safford was a Detroit resident. He died on September 9, 2022.
