Teddy Pendergrass was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on March 26th,1950. He was raised by his mother-a strong-willed, independent and God-fearing South Carolina sharecropper’s daughter, who essentially became a single parent when Teddy’s father abandoned her one month before his birth. Although Teddy’s dad lived no more than a trolley ride away for most of Teddy’s childhood, he chose not to be part of his son’s life. He was stabbed to death during a fight with a drinking buddy when Teddy was twelve years old.

Though he sang in church and in a boy’s choir, Teddy didn’t think of singing as anything more than an enjoyable hobby. He would however, accompany his mom to work at a Philadelphia supper club where he would sneak into the dining room and watch performers ranging from Al Martino and Connie Francis to Bobby Darien and Chubby Checker. It was at the supper club that Teddy discovered another side of his musical talent: drumming. From the time he was thirteen he could sit down and play any rhythm, no matter how complex or fast.

Teddy’s desire for a career in music was firmly fixed the night he attended a Jackie Wilson concert, at Philadelphia’s famed Uptown Theater, and watched Wilson entrance and control the audience with his performance. Teddy began working as a drummer wherever and whenever possible and eventually landed a job with Harold Melvin, a longtime fixture on the Philadelphia music scene and leader of the Blue Notes. The grouped toured through the U.S., the Caribbean and South America during the late 60’s and early 70’s and eventually signed a record deal with legendary writer/producers Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff at Philadelphia International Records.

The Blue Notes recorded several albums, including Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, “Black & Blue,” “To Be True,” and “Wake up Everybody”, in addition scored with such hits as “The Love I Lost,” “Yesterday I Had the Blues,” and Grammy-nominated “If You Don’t Know Me by Now.” In October 1975 Teddy, unhappy with Melvin’s totalitarian control of the group, quit the Blue Notes. In The fall of 1976 he embarked on his solo career. Teddy scored big with hits that included “I Don’t Love You Anymore,” “You Can’t Hide from Yourself,” “Close the Door,” “Turn Off The Lights” and “Love T.K.O.” He became the first black male singer in history to record five consecutive multiplatitnum albums. (Teddy Pendergrass, Life Is a Song Worth Singing, Teddy, Teddy Live! Coast to Coast and TP). Although he relished his recording success, Teddy continued performing live in the U.S. and overseas, consistently sold out major arenas, including Madison Square Garden, Atlanta’s Omni, Chicago’s Cominsky Park and the Philadelphia Spectrum.

On March 18th, 1982 Teddy’s life changed dramatically and forever when a horrifying auto accident left him paralyzed from the chest down and wheelchair- bound. He spent the next six months in the hospital and in rehabilitation before returning home and has since been hospitalized more than a dozen times, for everything from the treatment of mild infections to extensive, life-altering surgery. As a result of his accident Teddy struggled for many years with insomnia and depression.

Teddy returned to recording the year after his accident and has since recorded “Love Language” in (1984), “Workin’ it Back” (1985) “Joy” (1988), “Truly Blessed” (1990) “A Little More Magic” (1993), and “You and I” (1997). The entire Joy album and a track on each on each of the next two albums were nominated for Grammy’s. He also scored a dozen charting singles, including two # 1 R&B and three top twenty hits.

The year 1985 also marked Teddy’s return to live performing with a stirring appearance at LIVE AID an internationally televised concert to support famine relief. In 1996, eager to prove himself, embarked on a grueling twenty-two city tour as a cast member of the legendary gospel musical “Your Arms Too Short to Box with God”.

Since his accident Teddy has become an outspoken advocate for the disabled. He recently founded the Teddy Pendergrass Education/Occupation Alliance for the Disabled, a national organization that helps people with spinal cord injury bridge the gap between potential and productivity. The organization serves as a conduit, making the resources of government, universities and private industry more readily available to people who seek education, training and employment.