Orlando Sentinel (Sunday)

Teddy Richards ready to talk Aretha Franklin

Musician kept quiet about famous mom to make own name

- By Brian McCollum

For years, a Detroit singer-songwriter diligently pursued his music career, building a reputation and making a steady living.

Through it all — as he hustled, performed and promoted his work — Teddy Richards deliberate­ly muzzled one of the most compelling selling points at his disposal: He is the son of Aretha Franklin.

“I learned quite early, especially when dealing with journalist­s or people tied to the industry, it was very easy to be exploited as ‘the son of Aretha,’ ” he says. “If you’re trying to do something in your own name, making your own way in the world, it’s going to be impossible if that’s how people know you. It would allow them to ignore your accomplish­ments.”

It’s not that Richards wasn’t publicly tied to Franklin. For 30 years, he played guitar as part of her touring ensemble, sometimes joining her in the studio. And that’s exactly how he described himself in his own news releases, marketing materials and interviews, where Richards was merely a “guitarist in Aretha Franklin’s band.” His mother was a “supernova,” he says, and he wanted his own light.

Now, at 58, Richards says he has grown comfortabl­e in his own skin, confident in his accomplish­ments and his developmen­t as an artist and producer. And he is at last ready to publicly link his own work to his Queen of Soul mom, recording an album to be released March 25 — what would have been Franklin’s 80th birthday.

“I feel internally I don’t have to be as stern with

myself anymore about that,” he says. “At this point, I’ve proved myself to anyone paying attention.”

The yet-to-be-titled release will include a cover of Franklin’s 1973 hit “Until You Come Back to Me (That’s What I’m Going to Do),” a song that holds a special spot in Richards’ heart: It was his first boyhood experience with his mom in a recording studio. He sat in on a session produced by Arif Mardin and featuring Donny Hathaway on piano.

Richards was born in 1964 to Franklin and her husband-manager Ted White, becoming the singer’s third son. White, who died last year, also had a March 25 birthday.

“That seems like a perfect day to release a record in both their honor,” says Richards.

Franklin and White divorced in 1969, and

Richards was raised by his father in Detroit. He grew up with an eclectic musical taste, scrolling the local radio dial and finding himself enchanted by pop and rock as much as the R&B he was immersed in. By the time he was 8, he was listening to Frank Zappa, and it was off to the races.

Richards was a relative guitar novice when he headed to Michigan State University in the early ’80s, but his skills quickly matured as his band the Preps played bars and frat parties, eventually landing opening slots with bands such as Modern English.

His mom took notice. In 1984, with a two-night stand booked at the Chicago Theatre during Thanksgivi­ng week and needing a guitarist, she asked Richards to join her band onstage. He had to borrow an amp from a

friend.

“I was terrified,” he says. “I’d never done anything of that magnitude.”

But things clicked, and Richards became a regular part of Franklin’s touring group. It was a job that left plenty of room for his own musical ventures: Having recently sworn off flying, Franklin was now playing just 15 or 20 dates a year. Still, it was enough to help strengthen his chops.

“It was by her grace that I was allowed to grow and become an even better musician,” he says.

Richards graduated from MSU in 1986. By the ’90s, he was playing solo shows regularly. There were high-profile spots — including a series of opening dates with the Red Hot Chili Peppers — and a growing European presence. Richards signed with a German record label and carved out an overseas niche for himself.

In the mid-’90s, a chance meeting with INXS led to an ongoing creative relationsh­ip with that group’s keyboardis­t and lead songwriter, Andrew Farriss. Richards says the Australian took him under his wing — where “I was working as a peer, but feeling like a student under his tutelage.”

“I was a bar star, playing loud rock guitar. Working with Andrew, for the first time, I started to understand structure, the master plan to a song, and not just winging it,” he says. “I started to really understand the correct way to write, be it a rock tune, a soul tune, a modern piece of music. He had a major impact on my becoming the musician and producer I am today.”

The two wrote more than a dozen songs together, some of which will make their first appearance­s when Richards releases his album next spring.

“This is a very important album for me,” he says. “There’s a lot of musical growth. It’s less guitarorie­nted and more songwriter-oriented. I’m a much better singer, much better producer, much better guitarist.”

Three years after his Franklin’s death, Richards says he remains awed by her musical legacy while continuing to take pride in new milestones — such as Rolling Stone magazine’s recent coronation of “Respect” as the greatest song of all time.

His long years of reticence about attaching his solo career to her train came from a reflective stance. He’d had what he calls “eye-opening” encounters with other children of celebritie­s — many struggling with that role and even some, Richards says, who seemed stunted for life.

He was happier to pattern himself on the likes of Kate Hudson and Norah Jones — the daughters of Goldie Hawn and Ravi Shankar, respective­ly — who forged their own paths in the arts, distinct from their famous parents.

“To some folks, it might look like, ‘He was denying his own mother.’ It’s not that at all,” Richards says. “I love both my parents dearly. But it’s important to be your own man, stand on your own feet, handle your own business.”

For Richards, the passage of time and his comfort in his own life’s work have him eased him into a different kind of headspace.

“If you’re able to establish your own successes — big or small, they’re still yours — it allows you to release your grip a little bit,” he says. “This is the package I’ve been given, and I’m going to make the most of it for the greatest success in life, with the greatest quality I can.”

 ?? ROMAIN BLANQUART/DETROIT FREE PRESS 2003 ?? Teddy Richards, son of Aretha Franklin, records at his home studio in Michigan.
ROMAIN BLANQUART/DETROIT FREE PRESS 2003 Teddy Richards, son of Aretha Franklin, records at his home studio in Michigan.

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