Little Richard was a stage name for Richard Wayne Penniman, an American musician, singer, and composer who was born on December 5, 1932 and passed away on May 9, 2020. For seven decades, he was a key figure in popular music and culture.

Richard performed in drag at this period under the stage name “Princess LaVonne.” In 1950, Richard became a member of Buster Brown’s orchestra, where Brown gave him the moniker Little Richard.

While touring the minstrel show circuit, Richard made appearances in a number of vaudeville productions, including Sugarfoot Sam from Alabama, the Tidy Jolly Steppers, the King Brothers Circus, and Broadway Follies.

By this time, Richard had relocated to Atlanta and had begun to enjoy rhythm and blues music. He frequented establishments like the Harlem Theater and the Royal Peacock, where he saw live performances by artists like Roy Brown and Billy Wright.

Little Richard parents: Charles Penniman, Leva Mae Stewart

Little Richard parents: Charles Penniman, Leva Mae Stewart

Charles Penniman

In Upson County, Georgia, in the United States, on April 10, 1910, Charles “Bud” Penniman was born. His parents were Ella (Middlebrooks) and Walter Penniman.

Around 1929, he wed Leva Mae Stewart (1912-1984).

He was a bricklayer and a church deacon who also ran a nightclub called the “Tip In Inn” and sold illegal moonshine on the side.

He was assassinated in February 1952 after an altercation outside his club, and his body was interred at the Bibb Mount Zion Baptist Church Cemetery in Macon, Bibb County, Georgia, USA.

Leva Mae Stewart

Richard Candus Stewart and Irene Veal were Leva Mae Stewart’s parents when she was born on December 24, 1912, in Georgia, United States (1884-1920).

Leva Mae Stewart wed Charles “Bud” Pennyman, sometimes known as Penniman, in 1929. (

She passed away on January 11, 1984, and was laid to rest in Macon, Georgia’s Bibb County, in the Bibb Mount Zion Baptist Church Cemetery.

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