Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. was born on the 20th April 1951, in New York City, USA, and passed away on the 1st July 2005 in Edison, New Jersey, USA. The singer-songwriter and record producer is best known as an R&B, pop and soul musician and multiple Grammy Award winner. His career began in 1974.
Have you ever wondered how rich was Luther Vandross? According to sources, it was estimated that the overall size of Bea’s net worth was over $30 million. Over 35 million copies of his 13 studio albums were sold, the main source of his fortune.
Luther Vandross Net Worth $30 Million
After the death of his father Luther, an upholsterer, when he was eight, Luther was raised by his mother, Mary Ida Vandross, a practical nurse, the youngest of four children. Since they were a musical family, Luther embraced music at the early age, beginning piano lessons when he was only three years old, and later by listening to black pop of that time. Patricia Vandross, his elder sister was in “The Crest” doo-wop group whose song “Sixteen Candles” was a pretty big hit.
While a teenager at William Howard Taft High School, which he graduated from in 1969, interest in girl groups as well as in gospel-based soul sound showed, as he formed his own musical group and started writing and composing. Luther enrolled at Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, but dropped out after only two semesters, determined to become a professional singer, in which he succeeded and made an impressive amount of money.
Luther’s first professional engagement came in 1974, when he was the backup vocal for British rock legend David Bowie, whose connections in the music industry and Luther’s talent helped start an illustrious career – he accompanied music stars like Bette Midler, Chaka Khan, Carly Simon, Ringo Star, Barbra Streisand and Donna Summer. He also wrote and sang commercial jingles for companies such as Kentucky Fried Chicken, Mountain Dew, Burger King and Juicy Fruit. These provided the basis for his upcoming fortune.
In 1981, Luther Vandross debuted with “Never Too Much”; the album sold over a million copies. He subsequently released several more albums throughout the 1980s – “For Ever, For Always, For Love” and “Busy Body” also sold more than a million copies, increasing the overall amount of his net worth.
Luther’s beautiful voice and eloquent renditions brought him cooperation with big names in the music industry, among whom were Dionne Warwick, Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Lionel Richie, Mariah Carey and Beyoncé. His popularity was dramatically rising as well as his net worth, and these collaborations certainly made a positive impact on Luther’s wealth.
His hard work, passion and commitment was recognized and properly rewarded in 1991 when Luther Vandross won his first Grammy Award for “Best Male R&B Vocal Performance”. In total he released 13 studio albums and sold over 35 million copies, and won eight Grammys, These achievements were the main source of his impressive overall net worth.
When it comes to his personal life, Luther Vandross never married and had no children. Allegedly he was gay. Apart from his “velvet” voice, he was also known for his weight and struggle with diabetes. In 2003, he suffered a stroke which left him in a coma for two months, after which he was barely able to speak and was confined to a wheelchair. He never fully recovered, and a 2005 heart attack proved fatal.
His mother, Mary Ida Vandross, who outlived all her children, started a diabetes awareness campaign, and raised funds for the Luther Vandross Foundation.
