Smokey Robinson decided to grab a few headlines to close out April, and spread some of Diana Ross’ business all out in the public. The Motown legend opened up about his past flings, including childhood friend Ross, in a new interview with The Guardian.
Robinson revealed in the interview that he had an affair with Ross for around a year. He was also still married to his first wife, Claudette Rogers. It typically isn’t good news when you’re changing the label to “first” with your wife.
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“I was married at the time. [Ross and I] were working together and it just happened. But it was beautiful,” the 83-year-old music icon told the outlet. “She’s a beautiful lady, and I love her right til today. She’s one of my closest people. She was young and trying to get her career together.
“I was trying to help her. I brought her to Motown, in fact. I wasn’t going after her and she wasn’t going after me. It just happened,” Robinson added. He also indicated how their romantic entanglement ended eventually.
“After we’d been seeing each other for a while, Diana said to me she couldn’t do that because she knew Claudette, and she knew I still loved my wife,” Robinson admitted. “And I did. I loved my wife very much.”
Claudette Rogers would remain with Robinson until their divorce in 1986, remaining together for 27 years. She would be dubbed the First Lady of Motown and joined the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of The Miracles.
While some will raise an eyebrow at Robinson admitting to the affair and sharing stories involving other people apart from himself, the Motown legend did pull some profound ideas from the moment. As PEOPLE notes, Robinson expanded on how love is “far more complex” than expected.
“You asked me what happened when we get older, and we get wisdom in life. I learned that we are capable of loving more than one person at the same time. And it has been made taboo by us. By people,” Robinson said. “It’s not because one person isn’t worthy or they don’t live up to what you expect – it has to do with feelings. If we could control love, nobody would love anybody. Nobody would take that chance. Why would you put your heart out there for somebody to be able to hurt you like that and make you able to have those feelings?”
