Syreeta Wright place of birth Pittsburgh
Biography
Early life and career
Wright was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States, in 1946, and started singing at the age of four. Her father, Lordian Wright, served in the Korean War and Syreeta and her sister Kim were raised by their mother Essie and their grandmother. The Wrights moved back and forth from Detroit to South Carolina, before finally settling in Detroit just as Wright entered high school. Money problems kept Wright from pursuing a career in ballet, so she focused her attention on a music career joining several singing groups, before landing a job as a receptionist for Motown in 1965. Within a year, she became a secretary for Mickey Stevenson, just as Martha Reeves had done before her.
A year later, Edward Holland of the Holland–Dozier–Holland songwriting team noticed Wright's singing and decided to try her out for demos of Supremes' songs. However, in those days, the team of composers Ashford and Simpson had joined Motown and their songs were initially supervised by established producers. Edward's brother, composer and producer Brian Holland, co-wrote "I Can't Give Back the Song I Feel for You" with the couple, and produced it with Lamont Dozier for Syreeta. Brian felt Syreeta was a hard name to pronounce, and that Rita Wright would make a good stage name, so Wright's first solo single was released in January 1968 under that name, with "Something On My Mind" on the flip side. It is often said that the song was initially written for the Supremes (by then billed as "Diana Ross & the Supremes"), but Motown session logos indicate that the backing track was not recorded for anyone else previously. Later, Diana Ross re-recorded the song for her solo album, Surrender, released in 1971.
Wright also performed demo vocals for the Supremes hit "Love Child" and for Ross' version of "Something On My Mind", released on her self-titled debut album. When Diana Ross left the Supremes in early 1970, Motown boss Berry Gordy considered replacing her with Wright, but offered the place in the group to Jean Terrell. According to several sources, Gordy then changed his mind and tried to replace Terrell with Wright, but this was vetoed by Supreme Mary Wilson since Terrell had already been formally announced as the new Supreme in the media and at the final performance of the Diana Ross-led incarnation of the group.
Wright also sang background on records by the Supremes and by Martha and the Vandellas, notably singing the chorus to the group's modest hit single, "I Can't Dance to That Music You're Playing". Wright met labelmate Stevie Wonder in 1968, and the two began dating the following year. On the advice of Wonder, Wright became a songwriter. Their first collaboration, "It's a Shame", was recorded by The Spinners, in 1969. Motown withheld its release until July 1970. The song reached number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100. Wright also began singing backing for Wonder, most notably on the hit "Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)", which Wright co-wrote with Wonder. On 14 September 1970, after a year-long courtship, Wright, 24, and Wonder, 20, married in Detroit. The couple then wrote and arranged songs for Wonder's Where I'm Coming From, which was released much to Berry Gordy's chagrin in the spring of 1971. The Wonder–Wright composition "If You Really Love Me" (which also featured Wright prominently singing background vocals) reached number 8 in the US that year. In 1971 the couple relocated to New York City.
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