Charles Wayne Hendricks: What happened to Ray Charles’ son?

Charles Wayne Hendricks
Charles Wayne Hendricks’ father Ray Charles

Charles Wayne Hendricks is the son of Ray Charles and his partner, Margie Hendrix. Charles Wayne Hendricks’s father was an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and composer. Often being called “Brother Ray” or “the Genius”, Charles was blinded during childhood, possibly due to glaucoma. He is regarded as the pioneer of the soul music genre during the 1950s by combining blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, and gospel styles into the music he recorded for Atlantic Records.

Charles Wayne Hendricks’ mother, Margie was an American rhythm and blues singer and founding member of the Raelettes, who were the backing singers for Ray Charles. Charles Wayne Hendricks is the only child of his mother and father.

Charles Wayne Hendricks: Bio Summary

NameCharles Wayne Hendricks
Famous as son of Ray Charles and Margie Hendrix
Date of BirthOctober 1, 1959
BirthplaceUnited States of America
Date of death2013
EthnicityAfrican American
NationalityAmerican
Zodiac SignLibra
ParentsRay Charles – Father
Margie Hendrix – Mother
Siblings Ray Charles Robinson, Jr., Sheila Raye Charles, MORE

Who is Charles Wayne Hendricks, Ray Charles’s son?

Born on October 1, 1959, Charles Wayne Hendricks is the son of Ray Charles and Margie Hendrix. He was born in the United States of America in New York City. Though Charles Wayne Hendricks is the only child of mother and father, He also has 11 other half-siblings from his father, Ray Charles’ side.

How did Ray Charles and Margie Hendrix meet? Charles Wayne Hendricks’ mother, Margie was a rhythm and blues singer and also one of the original founding members of the Raelettes, who were the backing singers for his father, Ray Charles. The couple had a six-year-long affair.

After she gave birth to Charles Wayne, Margie wanted Ray to leave his wife Della Beatrice Howard, and live with her and their son, but Ray refused. Margie and the Raelettes performed on several of Ray’s songs, but during the 1960s, Margie’s relationship with Ray began to fall apart and she later started to use alcohol and heroin, and her career began to suffer.

In 1964 the Raelettes released the single “A Lover’s Blues” which featured Margie on lead vocals, but this was the last song that she recorded with Ray, because in July 1964 during a tour in Europe, Ray fired her from The Raelettes during an argument.

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Charles Wayne Hendricks’s father, Charles stated in his 1978 autobiography, Brother Ray: Ray Charles’ Own Story, that he became hooked on women after losing his virginity at 12 years old to a woman about 20. “Cigarettes and smack [heroin] are the two truly addictive habits I’ve known. You might add women,he said. “My obsession centers on women—did then [when young] and does now. I can’t leave them alone,” he added.

Charles Wayne Hendricks’s father was married twice. His first marriage was less than a year, his second 22 years. Throughout his life, Charles had many relationships with women with whom he fathered a dozen children.

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Charles Wayne Hendricks’s mother, Margie Hendrix passed away in New York, New York on July 14, 1973, aged 38. The official cause of her death is unknown since no autopsy was performed on her. Most sources claim it was caused by a heroin overdose, but some rumors are saying that she died in a car crash or from cancer.

Some sources also claim that she was facing poverty around the time of her death. She was buried at New Bethlehem Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery in Register, Georgia. Charles Wayne Hendricks was raised almost by his famous father after his mother passed away at a young age. He lived in New York City.

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What happened to Charles Wayne Hendricks, Ray Charles’s son?

According to Yahoo News, the son of the legendary singer maintained a private life before passing away in 2013. The Outlet also stated that his obituary notes he was married to Marlene Hendricks from Aurora, Colorado, with whom he had several children and grandchildren.

In 2003, Charles Wayne Hendricks’s father, Ray Charles had successful hip replacement surgery and was planning to go back on tour, until he began suffering from other ailments. He died at his home in Beverly Hills, California, of complications resulting from liver failure, on June 10, 2004, at the age of 73. 

On June 18, 2004, his funeral took place at the First African Methodist Episcopal Church of Los Angeles, with numerous musical figures in attendance. B.B. King, Glen Campbell, Stevie Wonder, and Wynton Marsalis each played a tribute at the funeral. He was interred in the Inglewood Park Cemetery.

Who inherited the Ray Charles estate? How much is his estate worth?

Ray Charles had built quite a large estate before he passed away in 2004. The legendary singer left most of the money from his estate to the Ray Charles Foundation, a charity that supports the hearing and vision impaired. Each of his 12 children also received $500,000 in their trust funds per Cheatsheet

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  • Kennedy Gedzah

    Kennedy Gedzah is a graduate of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology-KNUST (2018). He is the Owner and has been the lead content creator at Dicytrends.com since 2020. His Passion for providing people with credible and well-researched information on the internet led him to build Dicytrends.com. With more than 5 years of experience in blogging and writing, he has amassed sufficient knowledge on various topics, including biographies, fashion and lifestyles, Entertainment, and more. You can contact him via email: Kgedzah@gmail.com

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Kennedy Gedzah

Kennedy Gedzah is a graduate of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology-KNUST (2018). He is the Owner and has been the lead content creator at Dicytrends.com since 2020. His Passion for providing people with credible and well-researched information on the internet led him to build Dicytrends.com. With more than 5 years of experience in blogging and writing, he has amassed sufficient knowledge on various topics, including biographies, fashion and lifestyles, Entertainment, and more. You can contact him via email: Kgedzah@gmail.com

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