(Luther Vandross: Never Too Much” is now playing in limited release in theaters. It will air on CNN and then on MAX streaming in 2025)
If you are a fan of Luther Vandross and you think you know most of all there is about the late acclaimed phenomenal singer, then you are in for an awakening. There is so much more that we don’t know.
Dawn Porter’s “Luther Vandross: Never Too Much “ is one of the best music bio documentaries to come along in recent years. Hardcore Vandross fans will be wowed and pleased at the information and footage Porter was able to dig up on the late singer.
The film has been well-received on the film festival circuit and was picked up for distribution by CNN Films in partnership with the company of one of his biggest fans Oprah Winfrey’s OWN.
Before Vandross became one of the world’s beloved male singers, he was a part of a few singing groups, sung a number of commercial jiggles, and sung backup with rock and R&B legends.
My biggest surprise was I always assumed Vandross was the recipient of a ton of Grammys. That is not the case. He had so many hits like “Endless Love”, “Never Too Much”, “House Is Not A Home”. It was very frustrating to Vandross. Did he face racism even after he became a one name entertainer? According to Vandross, he did.
Vandross died in 2005 of a heart attack.
Porter took some time out of a busy schedule to talk about her passion project via telephone.
AV: Out of all of the great singers there have been what possessed you to want to do a documentary on Luther Vandross?
Dawn Porter: I really couldn’t believe that he didn’t have a feature documentary. Someone who has written and produced with Aretha Franklin, and Dionne Warwick and with all the success he had as a solo artist. Having such an impactful career in American music – really the world. I just couldn’t believe there was no film. Of course, I was a fan but I was just curious on where did this man come from? What was his real story. Working with Sony (Music) gave us the ability to look into that.
AV: When did you first discover Luther?
DP: He’s one of those artists that you can’t remember the first time because it feels like he has always been around. And the idea that he is still being played, the kids are discovering him now. This summer I was at a few dance parties and he is always being played. He definitely has been a part of my growing up and part of my adulthood.
AV: I remember discovering him when he was with the singing group Change. (Luther left the group because he wanted to do his own music.)
DP: We have some great footage during that era. There was so much that I didn’t know about him. He did so many jingles that I didn’t know was Luther.
AV: You never saw scandals about Luther’s love life in the tabloids. Did he have a love life?
DP: We addressed that quite a bit in the film. He would say that he never found that one person that he was on equal footing and in love with. Of course, there was a lot of speculation about his sexuality, but I’ll have to refer you to the movie.
AV: That had to be tough on him as this singer who sung all of these classic ballads and he never found his true love.
DP: He was on Oprah like 14 times and they had a lot in common, particularly their public battle with weight. One time she asked him which of his songs was his favorite and he said, “Any Love.” He said it was the most autobiographical song. He never stopped searching for that love.
AV: I guess that is not so uncommon. I know a lot of people who have never found that “one” even if they have been married a few times.
DP: I agree with you.. Here is this man responsible for a million babies being borned – Dr. Love. We interviewed (singer/songwriter) Valerie Simpson and she said that he did not want to be known as Dr. Love. He said he wanted to be known for his singing skills but she told him, but that’s what you are. You have given us such wonderful love songs. She wanted him to accept it because he had given so many people the gift of words that they would have wanted to say.
AV: What will the hardcore Luther fan discover in this documentary?
DP: They will discover a lot about his early life, his teenage years before he was famous, and subsequently how he got discovered. Some of it is reminding people that he was not only a singer but an arranger, a composer, a producer. I think putting it together all in one place will help you understand the magnitude of his talent.
AV: Luther was the only male singer I heard referred to as a diva – divo. Did you find he behaved that way later in his career?
DP: I don’t think he was. I think he was exacting, but he was always that way. We have rehearsal footage of him preparing his dancers and they talked about how they wanted to live up to his expectations. We have in the film a montage of his elaborate staging and costumes and all he put into his shows. His shows were so legendary. He told his audience, “I will not play with your ticket money.” He understood that people were playing good money and deserved to be entertained. And he wanted to give as close to perfection that he could provide. That’s what he was going for. It wasn’t diva for diva sake. His attitude was ‘We don’t take our audience for granted.’
AV: What singer was that who fired him from being a backed up singer and told him that he needed to focus on his solo career?
DP: That was Roberta Flack. Unfortunately, she wasn’t in any condition to give us an interview so we have archival footage of her describing their relationships. That’s the beauty of this film is where we couldn’t get current footage we found footage of people talking about him.
AV: Did you ever get to see him perform live?
DP: No, I didn’t but it was fun watching all of the concert footage. We wanted to give people the feeling of watching a concert film. Working with Sony we were able to capture what it would be like to be at one of his shows.
AV: How long did it take you to pull it all together?
DP: It came together pretty fast considering the complexity of this documentary. It was about a year.
Luther: Never Too Much | Official Trailer (2024)
Luther Vandross – Never Too Much (Official HD Video)
