Bio
An Earl's Tale
Renwick Earl Harville was born in Gary, IN- the city that gave us Michael, Janet, and the entire Jackson clan, as well as the songbird Deniece Williams. His love of music started at a very young child when he was mezmerized by the sounds of Dionne Warwick, Tina Turner, Smokie Robinson, Stevie Wonder, and Gladys Knight & the Pips. Fueled by the tunes he heard coming from the radio and stereo courtesy of his father and sister, music was a passion that would never let up.
When young Earl joined the church at age 10, a new world opened up to him. He fell head over heels in love with the piano and was entranced by the wonderful singing from the choir. It was not uncommon for him to go home and mimic the musicians and directors he saw during worship. By age 11, he was directing with the Children's Choir. It was during his last year of middle school that he connected with the music of the man would become his most profound musical hero - PRINCE.
Earl was 15 when he began teaching himself to play keyboards. It was around this time that he began to discover his voice. He continued to be inspired by the music of the church but also by such artists as Prince, The Time, Jesse Johnson, Luther Vandross, Stevie Wonder, and Klymaxx, as well as the dynamic duo of songwriting and production, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. He joined his first band as a freshman in college and began formal music studies while originally majoring in nursing. With the encouragement of his instructors, he changed majors and eventually completed his Bachelor of Arts degree in Music-Vocal Performance at Columbia College Chicago. He began teaching school and also started giving private voice and piano lessons. He went on to complete a Master of Music Education degree as he continued his teaching career.
The R&B/soul/pop music of Earl Harville honors all the amazing artists and producers who served as his inspirations while showing his unique artistic take. He is committed to being authentic in his life and work as an openly gay singer/songwriter/producer and performer. He wants representation for LGBTQ urban artists now that he did not see much of in his youth.