LOS ANGELES — Janis Hunter Gaye, the second wife of Motown legend Marvin Gaye and mother of two of his children, has died, her family said in a statement. She was 66.
Jan Gaye, who sang backup on Marvin Gaye’s 1977 hit “Got to Give It Up,” died Saturday at home in Rhode Island. No cause of death was given.
“From the time she met my father, she was exposed to the way he saw this world was aching, and she did her best to preserve his legacy as he was taken from us far too early,” Nona Gaye said in a statement, after noting how “deeply saddened” she was by her mother’s passing. “She took every moment to speak about every word and every note of his music, and she wanted to make sure everyone knew the man she fell in love with.”
“From the first memory of my grandmother, I knew then and now, how much she cared about her family and the warmth she gave to all of us,” grandson Nolan Pentz said. “I will always be grateful for all the memories. She also cared about so many people in the world, and I will do everything I can to put into action the things she wanted and help continue the Gaye legacy.”
Jan Hunter was introduced to Marvin Gaye in 1973 in Los Angeles, via a producer friend of her mother’s, when the singer was 34 and she was 17. At the time, Gaye was still married to but estranged from first wife Anna Gordy, sister of Motown founder Berry Gordy. Anna Gordy and Gaye separated in 1975 and divorced in 1977.
After welcoming daughter Nona in 1974 and son Frankie in 1975, Jan and Marvin got married in 1977. They separated in 1979, and their divorce was finalized in 1981.
Marvin Gaye died at the age of 44 three years later after being shot twice in the chest by his father at the Crenshaw District home he shared with his parents. Jan Gaye was misidentified as “Janie Hunger” in the Los Angeles Times’ obituary of her ex-husband.
Marvin Gaye wrote his 1974 hit “Jan” for the woman who would become his second wife, featuring the lyrics, “See, Janice is unique/ One of a kind/ Who says she loves me/ When she goes to sleep, I kiss her face/ And think I’m the luckiest man/ And I’m her greatest fan/ There is no sweeter girl in all the land (Land)/ Than my Jan (Jan), Janice (Janice), Jan (Jan), oh Jan (Janice) Jan (Jan).”
In 2015, writing as Jan Gaye, she released the book “After the Dance: My Life With Marvin Gaye.” The book was described by publisher HarperCollins as “a searing memoir of drugs, sex, and old school R&B.”
“One moment Jan was a high school student; the next she was accompanying Marvin to parties, navigating the intriguing world of 1970s-‘80s celebrity; hanging with Don Cornelius on the set of ‘Soul Train,’ and helping to discover new talent like Frankie Beverly,” HarperCollins continued. “But the burdens of fame, the chaos of dysfunctional families, and the irresistible temptations of drugs complicated their love.”
In the family statement, Nona Gaye, who acted in “Ali” and “The Matrix” series, described her mother as an unforgettable woman.
“Every word from her mouth was from her soul. She never said anything she didn’t mean,” the actor said. “I know her drive and influence from the time she was 17 until the day she died was all about her family and family that extended beyond blood — brothers, sisters in every part of this beautiful and painful planet.”
In addition to her children and grandson, Jan Gaye is survived by her sister Shawnn Monteiro and brother Mark Gaillard. Services will be private, with a public event announced at a later date.
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