Samuel Cooke (né Cook; January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964) was an American soul singer and songwriter. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential soul artists of all time and is often referred to as the "King of Soul" due to his distinctive vocal style, contributions to the development of the genre, and impact on popular music. During his thirteen-year career, Cooke released 29 singles that reached the Top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, as well as 20 singles that reached the Top 10 of Billboard's Black Singles chart. In 1964, he was shot and killed by the manager of a motel in Los Angeles. Following an inquest and investigation, his death was ruled a justifiable homicide. His family has since questioned the circumstances of his death. In 2015, Cooke was ranked number 28 on Billboard magazine's list of the "35 Greatest R&B Artists of All Time".
Sam Cooke was born Samuel Cook in Clarksdale, Mississippi, in 1931, later adding an "e" to his surname in 1958 as a personal and professional change. He was the fifth of eight children of Rev. Charles Cook, a Baptist minister, and Annie Mae Carroll. One of his younger brothers, L. C. Cooke (1932–2017), later became a member of the doo-wop group Johnny Keyes and the Magnificents. He was raised in a Baptist household.
In 1933, his family moved to Chicago, where he attended Doolittle Elementary School and Wendell Phillips Academy High School, which Nat King Cole had attended a few years earlier. He sang in his father's church choir and began performing with his siblings in a group called the Singing Children at the age of six. As a teenager, he became the lead singer of the Highway Q.C.'s after joining the group at 14.
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